Because You Found Me
by obi's girl
Summary: Betrayed and confused, Claire runs away and winds up at Peter's doorstep. What she doesn't realize when she arrives in New York is that several people are after her for various reasons.
1. Chapter 1

Because You Found Me   
By obi's girl

Summary: Betrayed and confused, Claire runs away and winds up at Peter's doorstep. What she doesn't realize when she arrives in New York several people are after her for various reasons.

Claire Bennet stared blankly out her bus window as small droplets of rain ran down over the glass. It didn't have to come to this, but Claire knew that she couldn't stay there anymore and pretend that nothing had changed. Six months ago, when she discovered her little "abnormality," she thought it was a fluke and enlisted Zack to help her understand.

What she didn't realize at the time was that her father already knew about her and hid it from her. After homecoming, when she finally came clean, Claire was horrified to learn that he knew about her but hadn't said anything. He promised her that her secret would remain a secret. Claire didn't think that her father would wipe her brother's memory or Zack's, but he had, and at one word from him, and her memories would be gone, too.

But…but Claire realized that, even if her memory was wiped, it wouldn't erase the fact that she would still be a target. That's why she had to leave. The memory of Jackie's murder during homecoming was still fresh in her mind, as were the events of that whole night, including meeting Peter. He was someone she didn't wish to forget. Claire wasn't even expecting him, but he knew to find her.

_//Save the cheerleader, save the world. // _

Claire still couldn't understand that. When she met Peter again at the police station, she hadn't had much time to ask what he meant, but at least she knew that she wasn't alone. Now she was heading to New York to be with her hero.

"Excuse me, passengers," a voice said over the intercom. "We'll be arriving in the Port Authority in thirty minutes. Please make sure you have all your belongings, and enjoy your trip!"

Claire checked her bag, and at the same time removed a small notebook from it. She'd jotted down Peter's name, notes about her father, the Haitian and other information. All she needed to do was look through a telephone book and find Peter.

"Claire, the school bus is arriving in twenty minutes. Come down and have a little breakfast before your brother eats it all," Mr. Bennet called up to his daughter. Lyle was already sitting at the table, eating pancakes. "Claire…" he warned again.

Suddenly, Mr. Bennet remembered the conversation he had had with Claire before she went to bed. She'd barely eaten her dinner, and he knew the events of homecoming were still bothering her. After dinner, he promised her again that there was no need to worry about anything. Her powers would remain a secret, and he had taken steps to make sure that no one knew about her. No one. Claire had only nodded, kissed him good night and quietly went to bed. Mr. Bennet looked at Lyle. "Check up on your sister, and tell her to come down for breakfast before the bus comes."

Lyle shrugged and ran upstairs, pounding on Claire's bedroom door. Mrs. Bennet stopped feeding the dog and looked at her husband. She knew that he felt that something was off. Before she could ask what was wrong, Lyle came back downstairs in a hurry.

"She's not there," Lyle said, panicked. "She's gone,"

"Sandra, call 911," Mr. Bennet instructed his wife, as she left the dog alone and went to the telephone. Lyle looked at his father, worried. "Get your things together. You don't want to be late for school," he said.

Lyle frowned. "But what about Claire?"

"Don't worry," he said evenly, "she'll be back." He smiled.

Lyle nodded okay, grabbed his backpack and went out to the bus stop.

Mr. Bennet sat down and started tapping his fingers lightly on the table. "She'll be back," he repeated. "She'll be back."

tbc


	2. Chapter 2

Because You Found Me – Chapter 2  
By obi's girl

Claire looked again at the address on the scrap paper. She'd stopped into a local diner and asked if there was a directory she could use. The server told her there was one in the back. Thankfully, Petrelli wasn't a common name. There were only three Petrellis in New York, but she was only looking for one: Peter. She quickly copied down the address and phone number and left the diner. An hour later she was in downtown New York. She could have called ahead since she had his number, but he probably didn't expect to see or hear from her again so soon.

Besides, Claire liked the idea of the element of surprise. She hadn't been expecting him to find her in Odessa, but he had, and now it was her turn to find him. Claire sighed and walked up three flights of stairs to his door and knocked. She heard an irritated groan, and then movement as Peter tried to quickly tidy the apartment before opening the door. He opened it slightly at first, and once he realized it was she, he opened the door the whole way. 

Claire smiled. "Hi," she said, "can I come in?" 

Peter didn't what to say, so he moved aside, letting her inside. Once she was in, he looked into the hallway before shutting the door behind him. Finally, Peter was able to say something. "What are you doing here?" he asked. It seemed like a logical question. 

"I ran away."

_A logical answer,_ he thought.

"I couldn't stay there anymore. After homecoming, I told my dad everything, and he admitted that he knew," she cried. "Before you, my friend Zack and my little brother were the only ones that knew the truth…and you know what he did to them?"

Peter frowned, fearing her answer. He didn't like the type of person who could kill anybody. His blood went cold, thinking a man like him could be so close to Claire. "What did he do?"

"He wiped their memories…he said that he would talk to them, but I didn't think that anything like that would happen," she cried and sat down on the couch.

Peter sighed and sat down beside her. Mr. Bennet seemed like a harmless man when he met him. He cared about Claire's wellbeing and would do anything to protect her, as any father would. "Is that what he does?" he asked. Like Claire, Peter still didn't know everything about what was going on. Now she probably thought that he was dumb or something. 

"It wasn't him. There was another guy. He worked with my dad. Not much of a talker…tall, dark skin, bald," she said, smiling slightly. "The Haitian. He attacked me when I was home alone."

Peter clenched his fist. Claire looked away. "My father sent him to take care of me, the same way he'd taken care of Lyle and Zack's memories. But he said that it was important for me to remember everything that was happening." She paused and looked at Peter. "After that, I knew I couldn't stay there anymore. I had to leave…I just couldn't stay there anymore…I'm sorry." Claire started crying. Peter reached over and let her cry on his shoulder. "I'm sorry," she said again.

"There's no need to be sorry, Claire," Peter whispered. "I think if I was in your position, I would have run too."

"There's one more thing I need to ask you," she said between sobs. "Can I stay here with you?"

tbc


	3. Chapter 3

3

Because You Found Me by obi's girl

Because You Found Me – Chapter 3

By obi's girl

"When was the last time you saw your daughter?" Detective Audrey Hanson questioned as Matt Parkman tried to probe Mr. Bennet's thoughts. Mrs. Bennet had gone out to buy groceries, leaving her husband alone with the two cops.

"Last night after dinner. She was still upset about homecoming," he said. "I assured her that everything would be okay and to just forget about it."

Audrey glanced at Matt and then looked again at Mr. Bennet. "She was supposed to be crowned homecoming queen, right?" she asked.

"Yeah. She won the election in a landslide, but at school, one of her friends and rivals, Jackie, wasn't happy about it, so Claire punched her. I grounded her that night for attacking her, but Claire still left anyway," Mr. Bennet explained. "I know these things must be traumatic for her, but Claire knew that she could always talk to me if she needed to."

Audrey smiled partly. "I'm sure she knew." She looked at Matt again and stood up from the couch. "May we have a look in your daughter's room? Maybe she left some notes about where she ran off too…"

Mr. Bennet smiled. "Of course," he said, looking briefly at Matt. Matt tensed for a minute and then relaxed. "I'm sorry, Mr. Parkman, did you have other questions you wanted to ask me as well?"

"No, none at the moment," he said. Audrey sighed and followed Mr. Bennet upstairs.

Mr. Bennet waited for his visitors at the top of the stairs. Matt remained silent, observing Mr. Bennet's actions. He wasn't reading the other man's mind anymore, but he could still pick up stray thoughts from him and Audrey. Claire's laptop was still on, but the screensaver had activated since it was no longer in use. Her bed had barely been slept in, and several of her drawers were open. Wherever she had fled to, she left in a hurry. Audrey and Matt looked around the room, but there was no sign of a struggle. As they were looking, Matt noticed a crumpled paper in the trash bin. Audrey sat down at the computer and tapped on the keyboard, removing the screensaver.

"If your daughter left town, Mr. Bennet, she'd need to look for buses from here to wherever she was going," Audrey said and pulled up Claire's Internet history. She searched for greyhound buses but didn't select a final destination. Matt continued to look around the room. He wanted to talk to Audrey in private, but Mr. Bennet was still in the room, anxiously waiting for an explanation. "Um, Mr. Bennet, can we have some time to look through your daughter's computer? This may take a while," Audrey said.

Mr. Bennet smiled. "Of course. I'll be downstairs if you need me." He looked at Matt again and left the room.

Once Matt could feel that he was gone, he picked up the small piece of paper from the wastebasket. He unwrinkled it and Audrey leaned over to read what it said.

"Petrelli," Matt said. "She ran away to find that Petrelli guy."

"The one that saved her at homecoming?" Audrey questioned. "Should we tell him that?"

Matt shrugged. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. He already has a suspicion that she left to find him. If we tell him that he's right, I think we'd be putting Claire in more danger."

Audrey glanced back at Claire's computer. She started typing "Petrelli" into Google and hit search. The first web page that came up was Nathan Petrelli, New York, New York.

"Stay here? Here in my apartment?" Peter questioned. "Why?"

Claire pulled away and laughed. "You're the only person I know in New York…where else would I stay? In a motel somewhere?" she said. "You saved my life at homecoming, and I know that if I stayed here, I would be safe. I trust you, Peter."

Peter breathed slowly and got up from the couch. If it were any other situation, he wouldn't allow it, but this was Claire. She was scared to go home, and if he said no, she'd be out there alone in a city she wasn't familiar with. A voice also told him that if Nathan ever found a seventeen-year-old high school girl was staying with him, he'd kill him.

"Do you have any other things with you?" he asked, and Claire, smiling, jumped up from the couch and hugged him.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, Peter!" she cried and kissed his cheek. "You're totally my hero."

Peter smiled a little.

tbc


	4. Chapter 4

Because You Found Me – Chapter 4  
By obi's girl

Detective Hanson promised Mr. Bennet that they would try their best to find Claire and bring her home. Once they were away from the house and back in Matt's car, Matt felt a cold shiver come up his spine. Both times he'd seen Mr. Bennet he'd had an eerie feeling about the guy. This time, the feeling made him sick. Audrey looked at him and became worried, touching his shoulder. "Matt? Matt, are you okay?" she asked. 

"Each time I've seen him, it makes me sick. At the station, when I tried to read Claire's thoughts, there was lots of static. I couldn't know what she was thinking then, but when we were in there, there were a couple of things that Mr. Bennet kept on repeating in his head."

Audrey sighed. "He's obviously worried about her."

Matt nodded. "It was more than that…he kept on thinking, 'she needs to be wiped clean.'" 

Audrey raised an eyebrow, confused by the phrase. Matt was confused, too. It really didn't make much sense. "Okay…anything else?"

"'She'll be back, she'll be back, she has to,'" he said.

"Where can I put my stuff?" Claire asked, picking up her duffle bag. It was actually her cheerleading bag, but it was the only thing she could find at the last minute. She didn't have the time to be picky about what type of bag she wanted to bring with her. She didn't even have the time to clean up her room after picking out clothes for her little trip. 

Peter scratched his head, unsure himself where Claire could stay in his little apartment. There was only one bedroom, but he could remove his things and sleep in the living room. It was only proper. "Um, you can take my room. I'll move my stuff," he said and quickly went inside the room.

Claire laughed a little. She had a younger brother, so she knew the room was probably a mess, with clothes everywhere. No matter how many times her mother told him to clean it, Lyle would be too lazy to pick up anything. After a bit, Peter came back out carrying some dirty clothes. "This might take awhile, actually…do you wanna go out for a bit?" he asked. 

Claire rolled her eyes. "Unbelievable…just like my brother," she mused and looked at him, smiling. "Sure. I don't mind. What place did you have in mind?"

Peter hesitated before continuing. "No where in particular. It's more like someone I think you should meet," he said and smiled. "You probably haven't even heard of him before. but I guess you can consider him to be like 'Professor X' from X-Men."

Claire nodded and moved away from him slightly. Peter smiled and took hold of her hand. "Believe me, he doesn't have powers to read your mind or anything. He's just...it's complicated, but I'll explain to you on the way over."

"All right," she conceded and the two left the apartment.

Once Audrey and Matt were gone, Mr. Bennet went back to Claire's bedroom and sat down at her computer. He typed in a keyword into the Google search and the first web page that came up was for Nathan Petrelli. Mr. Bennet picked up his daughter's phone and leaned back on the computer chair.

"Yes, we have a situation. Claire's run away and I need you to locate her," he said and looked once again at the web page. "It's the man from the station that saved her at homecoming, Peter Petrelli. His location: New York City. Yes, thank you, and keep me up to date on your progress. No, next time call my cell phone." He laughed a little, "I just don't have it on me right now."

He put down the phone and closed the browser. 

tbc


	5. Chapter 5

Because You Found Me   
Chapter 5

By obi's girl

"…His name is Mohinder Suresh," Peter explained as he and Claire went inside Mohinder's apartment building. "His father was doing research on people like us…"

Claire looked skeptically back at him. "What do you mean, 'people like us?'" Peter stopped walking and looked at her. "Do you mean that there are other people out there with abilities too?"

Peter shrugged and grinned. "Did you honestly think that we were the only ones?"

Claire hesitated. "Honestly? Yes," she admitted, "but I guess I should have expected that. There's you after all."

"And my brother," he added. "He can fly."

Claire raised an eyebrow.

Peter scratched his head. "I wanted him to admit to me that I could fly but he wouldn't. We were on the rooftop of some building. The closer I got to the ledge, the more Nathan was forced to say something. I got mad at him because I knew he was only admitting it so I wouldn't jump but then he motioned for me to look down and I was hovering over the ground."

Claire listened intently, not really paying attention to where they were going, or if it was even the right floor for Mohinder's apartment. "I had a dream once that I showed a patient of mine that I could fly. I went to the window and I flew. I never realized how beautiful the city looks from up high. I kinda felt like Superman," he continued. 

"But you can't fly now?" she asked, and secretly wished he could so she could see what he saw and felt, flying up there among the clouds.

He nodded. "Not right now, but the next time Nathan stops by, if he's close enough, I can copy his power and I'll show you what it's like." He smiled and Claire smiled back, liking that idea.

"So how would you classify your power, Peter?" she wondered.

He shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted, "but that's why we're here." Peter finally looked around the floor. Both of them were standing in front of Suresh's apartment. Peter knocked the door.

Mohinder scrambled up from where he was and answered the door, very surprised to see Peter again. He barely noticed Claire by his side. "Mr. Petrelli," he greeted, and then looked over at Claire. Claire smiled up at him.

"Mohinder, this is Claire Bennet," Peter said.

Mohinder didn't say anything as he let them inside. Claire noticed that there was a list of names on the computer screen. "My father met your father," Mohinder said.

"Who hasn't?" Peter added, "I met him in Odessa."

Claire frowned. "Wait a minute; my father met your father? When? I don't remember him coming to New York for anything. How do you know that?" 

"I didn't know, but I had a vision that he was here in this apartment, talking with my father about you. My father said that you were special, but didn't specify how," Mohinder said. "But I must confess, I didn't know that you were this young. So, what can you do? What's your special ability?"

Claire searched around for something to hurt herself with and found a stapler. Even though Peter knew what she could do, he still tried to stop her, but she already punched a staple through her left hand. Claire raised her hand and Mohinder watched as her skin miraculously healed itself. All that remained was the blood. Peter went to the bathroom and came back with some tissues. Claire thanked him as she sat down and cleaned off her hand.

"Um, that's kind of disgusting," Mohinder observed, "but useful. So absolutely nothing can hurt you?" 

Claire looked up at him. "That was nothing. I died in Odessa from a car crash. There was this guy…he hurt me, so I wanted to hurt him back. I died, and if you can believe it, I woke up on an autopsy table," she explained. Claire used the rest of the tissue to dry her skin.

Peter cringed, not from the picture of Claire waking up in the middle of an autopsy, much less her own autopsy, but from the idea that some guy even dared to touch and hurt her. He wanted to ask what happened to the boy, but he knew he probably survived with some broken bones and a bruised ego. 

"Regenerative healing," Mohinder observed, "that's amazing!" He turned and looked at Peter. "What about you 'flying man?' Have you flown recently?"

'Flying man?' Claire liked that.

"No, I haven't flown recently, but I died, too, for a brief few minutes. But Claire was there, and I guess I absorbed her powers and came back," Peter replied. "I went to Odessa to find Claire because of what Hiro said."

"Hiro? Who's he?"

"Never mind. It's too complicated to explain," Peter said and looked at Claire.

She wasn't looking at Mohinder anymore, but was more curious about what was on the computer screen. Mohinder saw her looking in the direction and moved aside. "It's all right," he said. "Over the years, my father collected data from people like you all over the globe and he mapped their location over there," he said, pointing to the maps on the wall.

Claire didn't even notice the maps and walked closer to them. Different colored strings were scattered around the map, held in place with thumbtacks and she saw a marker on Odessa, Texas. "What do the colors mean?"

Mohinder shrugged. "I don't really know. I'm just figuring out now what his research means. I think they're supposed to signify whose deceased, who has special abilities and who doesn't. Something like that," he explained. "You're on the list. Do you want to take a look?" 

Claire came over from the wall and looked over Mohinder's shoulder. All of the names were sorted alphabetically. Hers was the fifth one from the top. "No pictures, though," he added, clicking on her name. Claire was surprised to see her own stats, her home address, her parents' names, Lyle's name, and the school that she attended and even what grade she was currently in. It made Claire sick, and she moved away from the computer, nearly colliding with the table behind her.

Peter rushed over to her and gently rubbed her back. "Everything's there," she said, "And I thought the worst thing that could happen to me was that my annoying little brother would read my diary."

"Now he probably can, since you're not there to stop him," Peter pointed out.

"This might sound stupid, but is there any way you can delete my name from there? He can't find me here, Peter," Claire pleaded. Peter wanted to ask why, but he though he already knew. "As long as I'm not on that list, I'll be safe," she reasoned.

Mohinder glanced again at the screen. "But your father already knows about your powers, Claire," he said. "I don't think deleting your name will make any difference. Speaking of your father, does he know that you're here?"

Claire didn't answer and Peter left her alone. "Um, she ran away," Peter whispered to him.

"And she's staying with you?"

Peter nodded. "Only because she doesn't know anyone in the city," Peter added. "I couldn't turn her away. Someone could hurt her—or worse."

"You don't think a girl that can heal herself can't take care of herself?" Mohinder questioned.

"She's seventeen," Peter replied, "and I don't think that she would be safe, even if she was at home."

Once Claire calmed down, she went back to the wall and looked again at the map. There were so many more than she had imagined. She thought this was a rare condition, but she was wrong, and now she was a part of a statistic. "Peter's right," she interrupted, "I can't go back there. I can never go back there."

tbc


	6. Chapter 6

Because You Found Me

Chapter 6

By obi's girl

The taxicab pulled up in the middle of Times Square. A tall black man stepped out, paid the driver and walked over the nearest café. He asked the manager where he could find a telephone directory, and a cook pointed to the back. The Haitian didn't even thank him and instead, walked straight to the back, opening up the book. He flipped through the pages, stopping at "P." He spotted Petrelli's address and ripped out the page from the book, placing it carefully in his shirt pocket, and quietly left.

It wasn't hard to find Nathan's campaign quarters. There were large posters and banners everywhere and eventually someone gave Audrey and Matt directions. Everyone was too busy to notice them, but Matt stopped an aide as he was filing papers, asking him where to find Nathan Petrelli. The aide noticed that he was wearing a police uniform and told him that Nathan was in his office in the back, to the left.

Audrey smirked as they walked away and Matt glanced at her. "What?" he asked.

"You scared that poor intern to death," she remarked as they found Mr. Petrelli's office. Audrey knocked on the door. "Mr. Petrelli, we need to speak with you."

Nathan groaned, stood up from his desk and opened the door. He was surprised to see the two of them, and tried to remember if there were any unpaid parking tickets, but Matt quickly picked up on his thoughts. "No need to worry, Mr. Petrelli. We're not here about unpaid parking tickets. We need to talk to you about something else," Matt assured him. "Can we come in?"

Nathan sighed and let them inside. "So, what's this about?" he asked, sitting back down behind his desk.

"Claire Bennet," Audrey said. "She ran away. Do you know her?"

"Sorry, I don't know any Claire Bennet. Why would you ask me?" he replied. Matt was reading his thoughts and looked over at Audrey. He really had no idea why they were there; even Claire's name wasn't familiar to him.

"She ran away from home yesterday. And we believe that she bought a bus ticket to New York to see someone: Peter Petrelli," Audrey explained.

Nathan moaned and rubbed his forehead. Now it was coming back to him. After he had picked up Peter from the police station, Peter had rambled on and on about saving some girl, and because he saved her, he saved the world from destruction. Nathan thought he had been delirious, but Peter had muttered the same words when he went into a coma. "Do you have any proof that she came to New York specifically to see Peter?" he asked.

"Your brother was the only person who had contact with her, other than Sylar," Audrey said, and lowered her voice. "He tried to kill her at her homecoming."

Now Nathan was starting to develop a bigger headache. Why couldn't Peter just stay out of trouble and have such delusions of grandeur? "If you want to talk to him, let me talk to him first. I know where he lives; you can follow me if you want, but let me talk to him alone," Nathan said. He stood up, grabbed his car keys and left the office. Audrey and Matt followed him and as he headed toward the front of the office. He told an aide that he was going out for a little bit.

"What was my father like when you saw him in your vision?" Claire asked Mohinder as Peter studied the map on the mall. "What did he say?"

Mohinder shrugged. "I'm not even sure if that meeting really took place, Claire," he said. "I was confused then about what I should do. This research was my father's whole life. His colleagues snubbed him at the university he worked at because they thought he was crazy, but he was determined to find them all and prove that he was right. It was a fool's journey. He wrote a book about his findings and used it as propaganda to help other people understand their abilities,"

"But he was right," Claire pointed out. "There are special people out there. It wasn't a fool's journey."

Mohinder smiled a little. "I thought it wasn't at one time. I found his book in his office one day and read it. I thought it was amazing, but when he found me, you know what he said to me? He said that I shouldn't have been reading it and that this research wasn't meant for me. I was biggest supporter for a while until, he was killed for his beliefs," he said.

"What happened to him?"

"One of the persons with special abilities killed him. He was a watchmaker," he said and turned back to the computer, "his name was Gabriel Grey. My father approached him and told him that he might have special powers, but after various tests indicated that he didn't have any, my father decided to move on to the next person on his list. Grey was angry with my father so in an attempt to validate his hopes and prove that he was special, he used information from my father's notes, tracked down an individual with abilities and murdered him, taking his powers. Mr. Grey returned to my father's apartment the next day, this time demonstrating extreme telekinetic abilities."

Claire shuddered and glanced at Peter. "How did he kill him?" she asked.

Mohinder looked over at Peter as well before turning back to Claire. "He sliced open his head and removed his brain." Peter heard what Mohinder said and re-joined the two. "What? What is it?"

"That's how Jackie died," Claire said. "She was rival of mine. He was looking for me. Jackie claimed that she was the one who went into the fire and saved those people. Sylar thought Jackie was the one that could heal, but it was me."

"Where's Grey now?"

"Arrested," Peter added. "He was taken into custody for Jackie's murder."

Claire stood up and paced around. "Peter, I think we should go now."

tbc


	7. Chapter 7

Because You Found Me

Chapter 7

By obi's girl

Nathan pounded on Peter's door, more than a little annoyed that he managed to get himself into trouble again, less than a week after coming back from Texas. Before he thought Peter was crazy, but now Nathan realized that he wasn't just crazy. He was jailbait. Nathan pounded harder on the door, but no one answered. Audrey and Matt joined him.

"Sometimes I really wish I had been an only child," Nathan lamented. "Life wouldn't be so stressful."

"Where do you think he could have gone?" Audrey asked.

Nathan shrugged, leaning on the wall. "I really don't know, but he'll be back soon," he said, "And when he comes back, I'm going to kill him. Damnit, Peter! I don't need this so close to the election!"

Peter couldn't stop looking at Claire as he walked back with her to his apartment. She hadn't said anything since leaving Mohinder's place and he had no way of knowing how she felt at that moment. It worried him. They stopped before a crosswalk, waiting for the signal to change to green. Claire finally talked.

"I think I made a mistake coming here to find you," she said.

Peter braced her shoulder. "You haven't made a mistake. Claire, if you had stayed in Texas, who knows what else could have happened to you. Your father – he's a very powerful man – and from what you told me earlier, I think he would have wiped your memory if he had no other choice."

She looked at him. "But then things would go back to normal," she added. "I wouldn't be worried all the time about someone finding out about me. The worst things I'd worry about would be surviving high school and then deciding what college to attend."

"But you'd still find out about your powers," Peter finished and looked across the street as the signal turned green. Several people hurried down the walk but one man stood out among the crowd and he noticed Claire with Peter and rushed ahead, pushing people out of the way. "Claire, RUN!!!" Peter screamed.

Claire looked across the street and saw the Haitian; she turned around and ran back down the block. Peter pushed people aside as he ran, trying to catch up with Claire. He tugged at her shoulder, and the two of them ran into an alley. The Haitian didn't let up and ran down the block, searching for Claire and Peter. He stopped at an intersection and looked in all directions, but couldn't see them anywhere.

In the alley, Peter peeked out and saw the Haitian standing at the intersection, looking for them. Claire wanted to look too, but Peter wouldn't let her. "Come on," he whispered, "I know a shortcut to my apartment." They slipped out from the alley and vanished down another block.

The Haitian sighed, picking up his phone and dialed Mr. Bennet. His eyes still searched the streets for her and Peter, but he didn't see them anywhere. Mr. Bennet picked up.

"Yes?"

"I found your daughter," he said, "but I lost them. They ran away, but they're here somewhere. I'll find them. I have Petrelli's apartment number. I'll wait for them there."

"Very good. Call me again when you have her," Mr. Bennet instructed and hung up.

Nathan advised Audrey and Matt that it would be better to keep watch outside of the building. Audrey didn't really like that idea too much, but Matt told her later that he didn't sense any ill feelings toward them, just toward Peter for getting himself in trouble – again. So they waited outside. Thus far, the only two people that arrived at the apartment were a mother and her daughter who had done grocery shopping. No one else had come their way.

"Ya know, if that F.BI. what's-her-name knew that we were here she'd kill us," Matt said. He wasn't even supposed to be there but Audrey let him tag along because his mind-reading powers were useful. It was still difficult for him to filter various thoughts and distinguish whose was whose. Even in a big city like New York, he could hear what the guys down the street were thinking as they played basketball.

"Don't worry about her," Audrey mused. "She thinks I'm on this alone."

"Thanks," Matt said and looked across the street as Peter and Claire ran into the apartment building.

He started to leave but Audrey stopped him. "Remember, he wants to them alone first. We stay here," she reminded him and Matt shut the door.

tbc


	8. Chapter 8

Because You Found Me   
Chapter 8  
By obi's girl

Peter breathed heavily as he and Claire raced up the stairs to his apartment. For once, he wished he that didn't live on the third floor. He looked over at Claire, who stopped for a minute to catch her breath. Peter didn't know who that black guy was, but Claire obviously recognized him, and he recognized Claire. After a minute, they continued up the stairs. Claire was the first to reach the top and stopped short as she came face to face with Nathan. She wanted to run the other way, but something told her that he wasn't a threat, so she stayed there and waited for Peter. Peter reached the top a few minutes later and moaned when he saw Nathan standing in front of his apartment.

"What are you doing here?" Peter demanded, not wanting to get into another fight with his older brother. He searched through his pocket, found the keys and opened the door. Claire went in first and rested on the couch. Peter dropped the keys on the coffee table and turned to face Nathan. "Well?"

Nathan slammed the door behind him, causing Claire to jump. "Two cops came by my campaign headquarters looking for you and the cheerleader," he said coolly, glancing at Claire. "…and from the look of things, I see she already found you." Claire glared back at him, not appreciating his tone towards Peter. Peter was the only one that she could trust to protect her from her father and the Haitian. "I don't know what her story is and I don't care, I'm ready to turn you in for kidnapping."

"Peter didn't kidnap me. I ran away," Claire stated firmly, "and for your information, the reason why we're both out of breath is because one of my dad's associates was chasing us."

Nathan smiled and glared at Peter. "This is perfect, Peter. You made her father angry, and your timing, as usual, is very inconvenient."

"What do you mean inconvenient?" Peter spat back. "Because it's a week before the election and you're afraid of a scandal? Claire here is in real danger, and she came here to find me because it wasn't safe for her anymore in her own home!"

"Who was chasing you?" Nathan questioned.

"One of my dad's associates. I met him before; it was after homecoming. My father sent him to take care of me – to wipe my memory of the day's events. He didn't harm me, but he told me about my dad and what he really did for a living." Claire explained, "He works in some mysterious organization that hunts down people like us."

"What do you mean 'people like us?'" Nathan retorted.

Claire glanced at Peter. "People with abilities," she said and looked at Nathan. "You can fly, right?"

Nathan looked at Peter. He couldn't believe that Peter told her that he could fly. Yes, it was true, but Nathan didn't exactly going around bragging that he could. He had a reputation to protect, and unlike Peter, if he did say he could fly, he'd likely be locked up in a mental institution. "So, what can you do? Run really fast?" Nathan barked back.

"No," Claire replied coolly, "I can heal myself if I'm hurt."

"Is this man still after you?"

Claire looked at Peter. "Yes," she verified.

"Then I suggest you leave," Nathan said and grabbed her arm, pulling her toward the door. Peter jumped up and took Claire's other arm. "Peter, if this guy is after her, then most likely he knows where you live and he'll come here and take her anyway. She's not safe here with you."

"Yes, I am," Claire interrupted, forcing her arm free from Nathan. However, in doing so, she twisted it. Nathan watched as she snapped her arm back into its place and sat back down again on the couch. "I'm not leaving here."

Nathan was speechless.

The Haitian spotted the building from across the street. He re-read the address on the scrap paper, folded it and placed it again in his shirt pocket and walked across the street. Matt recognized him and alerted Audrey, and they followed him into the building. As they reached the front door, Matt grabbed his gun, slamming the front door open, letting Audrey in first. She searched the area, but no one was there. As she turned to tell Matt, the Haitian stepped out from the shadows and grabbed her, holding her neck between his palms. Matt slowly neared the Haitian, still holding his gun, but the Haitian didn't flinch.

"Let her go!" he demanded.

The Haitian started twisting her neck as Audrey cried out in pain. "Lower your weapon, Parkman," she ordered. "Lower it!"

Matt hesitated, but lowered his gun. The Haitian lessened his grip, but Audrey wasn't about to let him get away. She pointed her gun to the Haitian's leg and shot his knee. He let go of Audrey, collapsing onto the floor. People in apartments, hearing the commotion, came out into the hallway, but Matt told them to go back inside. Audrey stepped over his body, checking his pulse. He was still alive. Matt handed her a pair of handcuffs. "In case he wakes up," he said. 

Peter and Claire heard the gun shot from downstairs. They both looked at each other and knew it was the Haitian. He had found them after all, and tracked them back to Peter's apartment. Peter leapt from the couch, leaving the apartment. He ordered Claire to stay put and for Nathan to watch her. Claire wanted to go after him, but Nathan blocked her way.

tbc


	9. Chapter 9

Because You Found Me

Chapter 9

By obi's girl

Claire fidgeted, sitting back against the couch. She stared at the door behind Nathan. She wanted to know if Peter was all right, but if it was the Haitian…No, Claire decided. She couldn't take the chance and fall into a trap—but then again, if it was a trap, Peter was now the one in danger. She couldn't let her hero fall; Claire had to go to him.

"Don't worry about Peter," Nathan said suddenly, as if reading her mind. "Obviously, you're infatuated with him, and have made up this fantasy story that he's the only one that can protect you, so you can get closer to him."

Claire scowled, becoming more and more annoyed with him. How could he judge her like that? He barely knew her, and why wasn't he supportive of his little brother? He should have been worried about what was going on downstairs, and if Peter was all right. Claire sat up and looked at him straight in the eye, raising one eyebrow to show him that she was serious. "I thought you were a politician, not a psychologist," she said.

Nathan smiled. "I know my brother," he countered. "Ever since we were kids, he's dreamed that there was something more out there. I've tried for years to get him to see otherwise, but eventually, I stopped trying. Peter's a dreamer, and you—you're just a teenage girl with a crush. Though I have to admit that I am impressed with your strategy."

"My strategy?" Claire answered, crossing her arms. "And what exactly is my strategy?"

"I've done some crazy things in my youth to get my crush to notice me, but this is beyond that," Nathan observed and leaned forward. "Don't misunderstand me, Miss Bennet. Once this whole situation is cleared up, you're going back home to Texas where you belong."

"I won't," she declared. "I'm staying here with Peter."

Nathan grinned. "For a short time," he mused.

Claire glared at him and leaned back on the couch.

Peter watched as Matt and Audrey took the Haitian's body away, and then quietly left. As he went back upstairs, Peter realized that he'd saved Claire's life three times now: first, at homecoming; in the street today; and a few minutes ago. Claire was right, Peter mused; he was her hero. Peter picked up his pace and ran up the stairs.

"Why don't you care about Peter?" Claire found herself asking Nathan. "He's your brother, your younger brother. You're supposed to look out for him."

Nathan looked at her and sighed. "I am protecting my brother," he asserted. "Peter may not realize it, but I've always looked out for him. I'm even looking for him now."

Claire raised an eyebrow, but she realized that, in a way, he actually was looking out for Peter. Instead of bringing those two cops to the apartment to arrest him, Nathan had gone up to talk to Peter first, so he would know what was happening. And the reason why he didn't want Claire there was so Peter wouldn't get into even more trouble. But Nathan was wrong about her motives. She wasn't making any of this up to just get closer to Peter. Claire was really scared to go home because of might happen to her.

"I have a little brother," she said. "He's two years younger than me. Lyle can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but if we didn't have little brothers, life would be boring."

Nathan was about to rebuke her, but Peter came back. Claire stood up and went to his side. "It's all right. The Haitian's been taken care of. Two cops followed him and arrested him. They're taking him down to the station now," he said.

"Did they tell you that?" Claire wandered.

"Um, no. I watched them take him away," Peter said and looked at Nathan. "I can't believe you led them here."

Nathan straightened his suit and stood up. "They came to my campaign headquarters, Peter. They were looking for her," he said, referring to Claire.

"…Because Claire's father will do anything to get her back but she can't ever go back. It's not safe for her there," Peter defended.

"All right, that's enough!" Claire shouted. "It's over now! It's over." Nathan looked at Claire. "But I'm not going back there," she finished, going to her room and locking the door behind her.

tbc


	10. Chapter 10

Because You Found Me   
Chapter 10  
By obi's girl

"Nathan…" Peter started. "Just go." He was too tired and too annoyed with him to argue. So much had happened today he needed time to process everything and unwind. He dropped onto the couch, rubbing his forehead.

Nathan looked at Claire's door, then back at Peter. He trusted Peter and knew he wouldn't do anything foolish, or hoped that he wouldn't, but he didn't know about Claire. "Be careful, little brother," he advised, quietly leaving.

Peter leaned back further into the couch. He looked back once at Claire's door. Did he really know what he was getting himself into? Peter had had roommates before, but this was different. Claire was different. But they were the same, too. Finally, he stood up and walked to Claire's door. He was about knock, but she opened the door before he could.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

Her eyes were a little red from crying, but she'd hastily wiped away her tears and fixed her make-up. "I actually kinda understand where he's coming from," she said, referring to Nathan. "I have a little brother, too. He's two years younger than me."

Peter leaned forward and touched her shoulder. "Claire, you don't have hide from me," he said. "What did he say to you while I was down there?"

"Nothing," she nodded.

"It's not 'nothing,' Claire. If it wasn't, you wouldn't have been crying," he said. Claire wiped her face and went back inside the room, sitting on the edge of the bed. She held her hands in her lap, trying not to fidget but she couldn't help it. Peter sighed and sat beside her. "Claire?" he asked again.

"He accused me of making this stuff up to get close to you," Claire sniffled.

Peter scowled. Sometimes his brother could be so wrong, and Nathan was really wrong this time. He had been there at homecoming; he remembered Sylar going after Claire after killing Jackie; and then there was the Haitian chasing them through the streets earlier that afternoon. Peter didn't imagine that happening, and neither did Claire. "What else did he say?" Peter asked.

"He said when this was all over, I would go back to Odessa," Claire explained, "but I can't do that, Peter."

"You won't," he said, "We'll find a way to make this work. You can go to school here, finish off your junior year and apply to a college in the city."

Claire smiled. "NYU?" she guessed and Peter shrugged. "That would be nice," she said dreamily. "I can still attend my senior prom…" Claire drifted off and looked at Peter. 

"What? What is it?" he asked.

"I was supposed to be crowned homecoming queen after the game. My dad took me home right away to clean up, and by the time I finished my shower, the game was over and I never got crowned," Claire realized. "I didn't even have the chance to attend the homecoming dance. I'd already picked out my dress, a long, sparkling golden dress, matching shoes and purse. And my mom helped me pick out my earrings. It was sitting in my closet. I'd own worn the dress once in the store after picking it out."

Peter smiled, imagining the dress on Claire. She would have been beautiful, wearing a small tiara, pinned to her hair and sparkling blue eyes whenever she smiled. "Personally, I never really bothered with dances in high school. They're fun to attend, but…"

Claire looked at him curiously. "But what?" she wandered.

"I can't dance," he admitted. "I'm a horrible dancer. Absolutely zero coordination."

"We'll see about that one day," Claire giggled. Peter grinned. Claire then sighed, looking at his reflection in the mirror. "Thank you, Peter," she said. As he sat there, Claire held his hands in her lap.

tbc


	11. Chapter 11

Because You Found Me

Chapter 11

By obi's girl

Matt looked back at the Haitian as he drove. Even though he was still unconscious, the Haitian wasn't dead. It still worried Matt what would happen when this guy woke up. Audrey looked back at the Haitian via the car mirror and then looked over at Matt.

"Worried about something, Parkman?" she asked.

Matt shrugged, coming to a stop as they hit a red light. "Actually, yes," he said, "We have this guy, but the minute he wakes up, what are we going to do with him? Legally, he hasn't committed any crime."

"Yet," Audrey added as an afterthought. "We know that he's associated with Claire's father because we saw them together in Texas, which means that the only reason he would be here would be to retrieve Claire and return her to her father."

Matt pulled over, turned off the car and turned back to the Haitian. "There's more to this," he said. "I know there is."

"What do you suggest then?" she shot back.

Claire removed the tie on her hair, digging through her cheerleading bag for her hairbrush. After making the decision to come find Peter, Claire hadn't had much time to thoroughly check her bag to see what she actually brought with her. Her cheerleading bag wasn't big, and she wasn't surprised to find that her hairbrush wasn't there. Claire zipped the bag and started looking through Peter's drawers for something to comb her hair with.

Peter heard her looking through the drawers in the next room and came in. Claire looked at him sourly, holding the tie in her hand. "I feel like an idiot. I ran away from home with one of the most essential items a girl should always have on her: a hair brush. Do you have a comb or something that I can use?" Claire explained.

Peter smiled, reached through the top drawer and pulled out a spare black comb. Claire thanked him and started brushing her hair. Peter leaned back against the doorframe, watching her. "Tomorrow we can go shopping for anything that you need. Hairbrushes included," he said.

"Thanks," she said. "I even forgot to turn off my laptop before sneaking out," Claire frowned and turned to Peter. "Oh my God, I forgot to turn off my laptop."

"So?" he mused. "I never turn off my computer."

"Peter, that's how the Haitian found us earlier. That means my fath—" Claire panicked.

Peter stepped forward, grabbing her arms, holding her. "Hey, hey, it's all right," he soothed, letting her hug him. "I told you not to worry about that stuff now."

Claire started crying. "I can't help it," she whispered.

"Breathe," he said, "Just breathe."

Claire sighed, breathing slowly. Slowly, her heart calmed down but she started feel something else. It was warm in Peter's arm. Claire smiled. "Thank you, Peter," she said and smiled, remembering what he said earlier. "So tomorrow I can shop for whatever I want?"

"Need, Claire," he corrected her. "Whatever you need."

"Oh," she said and moved away. Claire started looking for her hair tie, but couldn't find it.

"Don't worry about it," Peter said. "You look better with your hair down."

Claire looked at him oddly and then blushed. "Sometimes I do, but once I started cheerleading, it always seemed to get in the way, especially during windy days," she added.

Peter grinned. "Um, I'm warming up some pizza for dinner. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine," Claire replied. Peter stood up and left.

Matt parked the car across the street from the apartment building. Earlier, he and Audrey found a local police station and dropped off the Haitian, telling the officer on duty that he was charged with attempted kidnapping. Matt and Audrey couldn't watch the Haitian 24/7 while tracking Claire at the same time, so they decided to drop him there and hoped that no other problems came up.

Now, Matt didn't believe for one minute that the Haitian was the only one that Mr. Bennet sent to retrieve Claire. If the Haitian failed (which he had), then it was likely that Mr. Bennet would come himself to get her. The best thing that he and Audrey could do was stake out Petrelli's apartment until he arrived.

"How do you know that Mr. Bennet will come after her?" Audrey asked her partner. "Did the Haitian think that before we found him?"

"No. It's just a feeling," he said.

Peter noticed the police car parked across the street. He knew it was the same two policemen from before. The fact that they came back after arresting the Haitian scared him. What if the Haitian told him that he was some criminal and had kidnapped Claire, and they were just waiting for him to make a move? Peter moved back from the window. _//Now I sound paranoid//,_ he thought.

Claire came out dressed in a fuzzy pink tank top and blue jeans. Peter went to the microwave, removing the leftover slices of pizza. He set three place mats on the table and the pizza in the middle. Claire sat down on one side, waiting as Peter set two plates and placed some napkins on the side.

She took one slice, grabbed some napkins, one for her lap and left some on the side of her plate. The pizza wasn't too bad, as far as pizza goes. "Sorry, I don't have much groceries," Peter admitted. "I usually grab a sandwich from wherever I am while at work."

"Where do you work?" Claire asked.

"No where in particular," he said. "I'm a hospice nurse. I have patients everywhere throughout the city."

"That makes sense," she mused.

Peter went to the refrigerator and grabbed two sodas. Claire thanked him and took the other soda as Peter sat back down, opening his. "Why does that make sense?" Peter asked, taking a sip.

"You help people," Claire said. "You're already a hero to so many."

Peter half-smiled. "I never really thought of it that way."

Claire ate a little more of her pizza. "I've never really thought about what I want to study after high school. Most people know when they're younger," she said.

"That's normal I think," Peter added. "I didn't know what I wanted to be when I was in high school. No one does."

"Why did you decide to be a hospice nurse?"

Peter shrugged. "I've always wanted to do something great with my life, and helping people, being there for them as they're dying, even to take their pain away for a little bit and give them some happiness…it's an amazing feeling," he explained.

Claire smiled. "That sounds wonderful," she said dreamily and continued eating her pizza.

tbc


	12. Chapter 12

Because You Found Me   
Chapter 12  
By obi's girl

"Hey Peter, I'm going to shower before going to bed," Claire said after putting her plate in the sink.

"Bathroom's across from your room and the linen closet is next to the bathroom," he replied. Claire smiled and thanked him, going back to her room to grab her clothes, and went across to the linen closet, grabbing a face and bath towel. 

Peter started cleaning the dishes, but stopped once he heard the shower going. He let the dishes soak, quickly wiped his hands and went to the window. The police car was still there. Peter looked at his watch. It was 8:30 pm. If they were planning on arresting him, they would have done it already, which meant that they weren't there for him. They were there to watch Claire and make sure nothing else happened to her. Peter backed away from the window and sat down on the couch.

The last thing he needed was to alert Claire that she was being watched. Seeing the list on Mohinder's computer and then being chased through the streets by the Haitian was more than enough excitement for both of them. Claire didn't need to know that she was being watched 24/7.

Peter leaned over, picked up the remote control and turned on the TV.

Claire finished her shower a half an hour later, dried herself off and put on her underwear and pajamas before leaving the bathroom. She'd neatly folded the bath towel and face towel, placing them on the top of the bathroom seat. The rest of her stuff she put back in her bedroom, and then she joined Peter in the living room. Claire found her hair tie and started fixing her hair as she relaxed on the couch. Peter looked over at her briefly and started laughing.

Claire looked at him oddly, confused over what he could be laughing about. "What? What is it?"

Peter covered his mouth and tried to calm himself. "Your pajamas…" he whispered and turned his attention to the TV.

She looked down at her pajamas and instantly, felt her cheeks turn a cool shade of red. Again, Claire hadn't really taken into account what type of clothes she grabbed from her drawers at home before taking off so suddenly. What she was wearing proof of that fact. "Okay," she said, "Just remind me tomorrow to buy a new pair of pajamas." 

Peter shrugged and lightly touched the felt. "Pink pigs aren't that bad," he teased.

Claire slapped his hand and grabbed the TV remote from him. "What, don't tell me that you never had any embarrassing sleep wear when you were a boy? Because I know there must have been several outfits that you'd wished you'd burned before growing into adulthood," she shot back, flipping idly through the channels.

"I did," he said, "I'm not afraid to admit that."

Claire looked over at Peter coolly and then back at the TV. She stopped on a channel and leaned back into the couch as she brought her hands to head to fix her hair into a braid. Peter grinned and looked at the TV. "We are not watching 'The O.C.!" he declared and stole the remote from her, flipping it to another channel.

"This is the last season," she said, taking the remote from him and turning it back. "Besides, I am not watching CSI. I know what it's like to be on an autopsy table. I don't need a constant reminder of that." 

Peter didn't say anything else. There was that reminder again of one of the heartaches Claire had gone through before the events of homecoming. She'd never really talked to him about what happened, but whatever it was, it was obviously always in the back of her mind. Claire probably talked to her father about what happened but something told Peter that it still bothered her. "Claire…" he started.

"Ssshh," she shushed him. "I'm not giving you back the remote, Peter."

"I wasn't going to ask about the remote," he said quietly. "What happened to you?"

"What do you mean?" she countered, not really paying attention to him. Peter finally took the remote away from her, drawing Claire's attention away from the TV. Claire was clearly upset, but she could see that he was upset about something too, so she didn't bother to reach for it again. "What? What is it?"

"Claire…" he started again, pausing. Peter really didn't know how to broach the subject without upsetting her further but he had to ask. "Were you raped?" 

Claire scowled and shied away from him. She actually continued fixing her hair into a braid even though she'd finished it long ago. That was one memory she didn't wish to revisit, and actually wished that the Haitian had wiped that part from her mind. It was a dark period for her after that.

"I don't want to talk about that, Peter," she said quietly. "That was a part of my old life."

Finally, Claire stopped playing with her hair, and instead placed both of her hands under her thighs. She felt like slapping Peter, but she knew he was only concerned about her.

"But he did, didn't he?"

"Yes, he did," she seethed. "Things just went too far and I accidentally got impaled on a sharp piece of wood from the bonfire. But I survived. End of story."

Peter knew that couldn't have been the end of it. He was hesitant to let the subject go, but he looked at the TV, turning it on again. Claire was still angry, but closed her eyes, letting the anger dissolve. Once she felt it was gone, she lay idly back on the couch. Peter glanced over at Claire. She was less curious about what was going on the television and was still visibly shaken by the memory. Peter scooted over and let her rest her head on his shoulder. "It's all right, Claire," he whispered. "I'm going to protect you. Nothing like that will ever happen to you again."

Claire finally let it out and started crying into his shirt.

tbc


	13. Chapter 13

Because You Found Me

Chapter 13

By obi's girl

Mr. Bennet carefully surveyed the damage around him, and he didn't like what he saw. Eden's body was being carried away in a black bag. Meanwhile, Sylar had broken out of his cell. Normally, he'd ask the Haitian to track him, but he wasn't available at the moment. In fact, it had been a very long time since he had heard back from the Haitian. Normally, he would update him on his progress finding Claire, but he hadn't done that.

Something was wrong.

Mr. Bennet went into the hall and removed his cell phone, calling home. Mrs. Bennet picked up. "Hey honey, I know its last minute, but I have a business matter to attend to in New York," he said.

"What about Claire?" she asked, looking away from Lyle, who was watching TV. "Have the police contacted you?"

"No, they haven't, but I'm confident that she'll return home very soon," he said and hung up. He was going to put the cell phone away but made another call. "Hello, can I speak with the lead investigator on the Sylar case?"

Claire lazily turned over, smelling the fresh eggs and cooking sausage. She smiled, stretched and sat up and left her room, walking to the kitchen area. Peter stood in front of the small stove cooking sausage and managing an omelet in another cooking pan. He turned briefly and smiled at Claire. "Good morning," he said, lowering the heat on the eggs. "Have a seat."

Claire sat down at the table. Peter turned off the heat on the stove and grabbed tongs, removing the sausage and placed them onto a platter. He took a spatula and placed the eggs on another platter and setting both plates on the table. He then went to the refrigerator and took out orange juice and some cups from the washer. Two empty plates were already set on the table, so Claire spooned some of the eggs and took two sausages. "I thought you didn't have any groceries," she said, eating the egg.

"I went out early. There's a small market not far from here," he said, pouring Claire a glass of juice. "After you eat, we'll go out and buy your things."

Claire looked at him thoughtfully. "Peter…" she started.

Peter nodded. "There's no need to say anything, Claire," he said, "Just enjoy the food."

"I swear the longer we wait here, the more I want to know what's going to happen next in this saga," Audrey mused, staring back at the apartment building across the street. Matt laughed, eating his breakfast. He'd stopped by a grocery store not far and picked up some bagels.

"It's not like we're watching a soap opera or anything," he said and noticed Peter and Claire leave the apartment. Matt waited until they crossed the street and then he and Audrey left the car, following them.

Peter showed Claire the subway and they took it to Times Square. Matt and Audrey followed, sitting in the next car. After some stops, they left the metro car and went up to the street. Claire looked all around, totally in awe. She'd never been in Times Square before. Peter nudged her and pointed to a CVS across the street.

A moment later, Matt and Audrey emerged from the subway. They looked around for the pair, and then Audrey noticed them walking to a CVS.

Claire strolled down the hair care aisle, looking at the different shampoos and hair conditioners. Normally, Peter would grab whatever was on sale, but things were different now. He had a teenage female living with him. Claire narrowed her search to a specific brand for curly hair and turned to Peter, picking up two different bottles of shampoo. One was blue and the other was pink.

"Which one should I get?" she asked.

Peter laughed, and then frowned once he realized that she was dead serious about this. This was a very important decision. "What's the difference between them other than the bottle color?" he countered.

Claire examined both bottles. "The blue one gets rid of frizzy hair and the pink one controls curls so it doesn't get too curly and frizzy," she said.

Peter took the pink one and placed it in the red basket he was carrying. Claire then turned to the conditioners section.

Audrey peeked over the aisle separating her and the aisle Claire and Peter were in. When she realized what they were doing, she looked away, tapping her hip. "They're buying shampoo and hair conditioner," she said quietly.

Matt looked over at them but they moved quickly to another aisle. It was the next aisle over, again, more hair care.

"I think we should wait outside. This is going to take awhile," he said.

Peter counted the amount of items in their small red shopping basket. Shampoo, hair conditioner, hairbrush and ehm, other feminine hygiene products. Claire noticed him looking at the basket and smiled. Whenever she shopped for any of this stuff, it was either with her mom or one of her girlfriends from school. Next time, she made a mental note to herself, when she needed to get these things, she needed to get them herself and leave Peter out of it. The last thing she wanted was to traumatize him.

They were next in line. Peter picked out each item individually while Claire checked a copy of "People" magazine. She stood, leaning against the counter, reading through the magazine. Audrey and Matt came to the front and quietly walked passed her and exited the store. Peter paid the cashier and tagged Claire. Claire put down the issue and they left the store.

Audrey and Matt sat nearby, Matt reading a newspaper and Audrey checking her cell phone. Peter and Claire passed them, walking down the street. Audrey nudged Matt; he put down the newspaper, ready to continue their stake out of the couple.

Claire stopped, staring at a window display. Peter sighed as she strolled into the store, checking out different outfits. Peter found a chair and sat down, watching Claire as she picked out various clothes. Many of them were halter-tops and jean skirts. Peter leaned back into the chair. Claire asked where the dressing rooms were and a customer representative said that they were at the back of the store.

"Peter, come on!" she called, pulling his arm.

"Why do I need to come?" he moaned.

Claire smiled. "Because I need an opinion," she said, pulling him to the back of the store. The customer rep smiled and went back to work. "I promise this won't take long."

_Four hours later…_

Peter Petrelli sat in the same place, the same store, waiting for Claire to try on yet another outfit. This time, she'd moved on from jean skirts and halter-tops to jeans and blouses. He looked over at the stack of clothes lying on the chair beside him. Of course, he hadn't anticipated when he offered to take Claire shopping that he'd end up waiting on her.

Finally, Claire came back with another stack of clothes. "Okay, I think that's it for now," she said. Peter sighed, thankful that this little shopping trip was over, until she spoke again. "Are there any good shoe stores around here?" Peter moaned and turned to the store clerk.

tbc


	14. Chapter 14

Because You Found Me

Chapter 14

By obi's girl

"Um, Claire, if I may make one suggestion," Peter started as Claire looked through a rack of high heeled sandals. "This is New York…"

She looked at him oddly, as if she hadn't noticed that she was shopping in a shoe store located in Times Square. "So?" she asked.

Peter stood up and maneuvered her towards the sneakers section. "The first lesson you need to learn, Claire, is that in order to get around the city, even if you take the subway to get around, you still need sneakers for long walking," he finished and picked up a pair. "Here, try these on."

Claire looked at the pair of sneakers and then at Peter before sitting down across from him. Claire removed her shoes, checked the size on the new pair and then put them on. "Now stand up and walk around a bit," he instructed her.

"Yes, teacher," she muttered and started walking around. "These are okay, but there needs to be more cushion in the sole." Claire went to a salesperson and asked if there any shoes like it, but with thicker soles. The woman left, and Claire sat down across from Peter, putting her old shoes back on.

"What about you, Peter? Do you want anything?" Claire asked, feeling somewhat guilty that she was making him spend so much money in one day. Not even her dad would let her have a shopping spree like this.

She frowned and quickly turned away, looking at more shoes. No matter how much Claire tried not to think about him, somehow, her thoughts always went back to her father. She had no sympathy for the man or what he did, but Claire still felt a connection to him she couldn't deny.

Peter leaned back in his chair and looked idly around the store. As his eyes wandered, he caught site of Audrey and Matt standing outside looking in on them. Peter stood up and went to Claire's side. "I'm thirsty. I'm going to get some soda…do you want anything?" he asked.

"Pink lemonade, please," she said sweetly and turned her attention back to another pair of shoes.

He left the store and met Audrey and Matt outside. "Have the two of you been following us around all day?" Peter asked. He spotted a hotdog stand and lined up. Audrey and Matt stood beside him.

"We've been watching your apartment since last night," Audrey said.

Peter moved up one step and smirked. "I know. I spotted your car across the street," he said. "At first I thought you were there to arrest me, but when I checked again, you guys still hadn't moved. You must be keeping an eye on Claire."

"Any reason why we shouldn't?" Matt asked, reading his mind at the same time. Peter laughed, looking through his wallet for some change. He ordered a small pink lemonade and a Coke.

"I'm not some psycho weirdo," he said. "I know the kind of heartache and pains Claire's been through. And not just concerning Sylar, but other stuff, too."

The stand owner handed him his order; Peter paid him and went back to the store. Claire thanked him, sipped her pink lemonade and showed Peter the shoes she'd chosen while he was gone. Matt watched as Peter nearly fainted, calculating the total cost of the shoes Claire chose, and he laughed.

Claire happily took some bags from Peter before they left the store. It didn't seem right that he was carrying everything they'd purchased thus far. Besides, neither of them had superhero strength. And, thankfully, there was the subway, so they wouldn't have to walk back all the way to Peter's apartment carrying such a heavy load.

As they walked away, Matt read Peter and Claire's thoughts. In Peter, he sensed no malicious thoughts or evil nature toward Claire. With Claire, it was the same thing. She adored Peter, and even had a slight crush on him, but she'd always remind herself that she was too young to be his girlfriend. Peter didn't even look at Claire in that way. He respected and understood her. And clearly, in the short amount of time they'd spent together, a bond had developed between them. Not of love, but of friendship and companionship.

Matt turned to Audrey. "I don't think we need to worry about them," he said, looking for a nearby subway.

Audrey raised one eyebrow, looking at Matt and then in the direction that Peter and Claire were walking. "Why not?" she questioned.

"Because…because…" Matt started, trying to find a way to explain their connection to his partner. 'Soul mates' didn't seem like the right word to describe them, but neither was 'lovers.' "Just trust me on this, Hanson," he said simply. "Peter Petrelli would never do anything to hurt that girl, and he would do anything to make sure no one else hurts her."

"How does that make him different from her father?" she wondered.

Matt shrugged. "When it comes to Claire, Peter's actions aren't selfish. But with Mr. Bennet…I question what his morals are," he explained.

Audrey flipped a stray hair from her face and looked across the street. Peter and Claire were gone, and probably halfway back to Peter's apartment now. She hadn't trusted Peter Petrelli before, but Audrey trusted Matt's judgment. "All right," she conceded. "We'll stop following them, but we're not leaving the city yet. The Haitian failed to retrieve Claire, and I'm guessing that he kept Mr. Bennet informed on his progress. He's probably realized now that something is up because the man hasn't contacted him recently. If Mr. Bennet comes to retrieve Claire, we shouldn't be too far away."

Matt agreed with his partner.

tbc


	15. Chapter 15

Because You Found Me

Chapter 15

By obi's girl

"After joining the cheerleading squad, I still felt like I didn't belong. All the girls are generally mean. They either hang out with their own or with the boys from the varsity football team. They don't mingle with the rest of the student body and any chance they have to humiliate someone beneath them, they will," Claire explained to Peter as they arrived back at his apartment.

Claire set down her bags near the couch. "I'd been friends with Jackie for a long time before cheerleading, but once she became one of them, she became a different person: a mean girl. I hate to admit it, but even though the cheerleaders were generally mean to everyone, I still wanted to be one of them. But I didn't want to turn into what Jackie had become. I'm just not like that."

Peter came back with two sodas from the refrigerator and handed one to Claire, joining her on the couch. He barely knew Jackie Wilcox, but future Hiro told him that he needed to save the cheerleader in order to save the world from destruction. After arriving in Odessa, he had found the high school and Claire, but he hadn't thought that he was there to save her. He didn't know that it wasn't Jackie who had saved that man from the fire. It was Claire. But not wanting publicity on the matter, she let Jackie take the credit, and now Jackie was dead because of her.

He couldn't save Jackie from Sylar, but he had ended up saving the right girl. Now part of his job of saving the world was done. But Peter still wished he'd been able to save Jackie, despite what Claire told him about her.

No one deserved to die like that.

"To answer your question earlier, I definitely would not want to be a cheerleader again. And not because of what happened at homecoming, but because I don't want to become like those girls," Claire finished and took a sip of her drink. "I still want to be a part of something, but not that…ever again."

Peter laid back and studied Claire. "Then what? Swimming? Dance?" he asked.

Claire smirked. "I'm not a very good swimmer. Dance is all right, but those girls are like cheerleaders. They have the same 'mean girl' attitude toward everyone else," she said. "When I was younger, I studied gymnastics. It was only for a short while, but it was fun. I'd like to do that again."

"You definitely have the right body for it," Peter remarked, and immediately regretted saying that. Claire studied him carefully. "I mean, you can heal yourself if you ever get an injury. That should come in handy in that type of sport."

Claire smiled. "It would be like that in any sport, Peter," she said and drank a little more of her soda.

Peter didn't know what else to say. He still felt embarrassed about the previous comment. Claire didn't have anything else to say either, so she stood up, grabbed her bags and went to her bedroom.

Peter thought he'd keep his distance from Claire for a little bit. He'd only known her a short time. However, he couldn't deny that he'd noticed some things about her, which set her apart from other seventeen-year-old high school girls. There was maturity behind her eyes. She always seemed to know more about life than any teenage girl should know.

He also didn't realize how much he'd be able to connect with her. He didn't think he'd be able to talk to someone like Claire on an adult level. Peter supposed that came about after discovering her powers, but he suspected that that maturity had always been there.

But this was only one of the things he noticed about Claire.

Yes, she was pretty, he realized. Claire was very pretty. Her blond hair was like gold-colored silk sheets, and her smile…Peter loved her smile. Her whole face lit up when she smiled. And her brown eyes were like chocolate…Peter had to stop himself.

This was Claire he was talking about. She was a seventeen-year-old girl, he reminded himself. Claire wasn't even physically mature yet, but her mind obviously was.

Peter moaned, stood up and then suddenly found himself standing in Claire's doorway. He didn't even remember walking there, but he could have in a brief second. His apartment wasn't very big, and the space between his living room and her bedroom weren't very far apart. She'd just finished putting her clothes away and stood near the bed, staring back at him.

"Peter, what is it?" she asked in a worried tone.

He tried to think of something to say, and then it came to him. "I wanted to ask when your birthday is," Peter said, leaning on the doorframe.

Claire smiled. Peter's heart melted. "August 11th," she said. "Why do you ask?"

"I was curious," he replied. Peter should have left after that, but he didn't move. What made it even worse was that he didn't have anything else to say, either.

Claire looked nervously around the room and then at Peter. She'd put away all her clothes and she felt odd standing there, and Peter standing there saying nothing else. She wasn't sure if there was something else Peter wanted to say or if he was expecting her to say something. The silence was too much for her.

"So when's your birthday?" she asked.

Peter looked at her suddenly, lost in his own thoughts, and blushed. "Oh, October 15th," he said and then remembered why he needed to see her. "Claire, I wanted to apologize about before…"

"Why?" she countered. "I understood what you meant. Don't worry about it, Peter."

Peter scratched his head and looked at Claire. "I don't want you to think that I'm some pedophile or something, because I'm not," he said.

"I know you're not," Claire whispered. "You're a good man, Peter. Do you know how I know that?" She walked closer to him.

He gulped. "How?"

"Because when I met you, I looked into your eyes and I saw someone who has never done anything with selfish intentions, someone who cares so deeply with his heart for everyone else, even a stranger he'd never met before, but knew that he had to save her," she said, staring into his eyes. "That's who you are, Peter."

Peter stared back into Claire's eyes. "Do you know what I saw in you when we first met?" he asked. Claire nodded. "Well, the third time anyway, at the station, I saw a girl who's wiser beyond her years about life and everything else. You may not have wanted to accept these powers in the beginning because they made you different, but there's a reason, Claire; there's a reason for all of us, why we were chosen to have them."

"Is that all you saw when you met me?" she wondered.

"No," he found himself saying, "I saw your heart too, and you are definitely like not Jackie Wilcox or those other cheerleading girls you described to me earlier. I know because I've gotten to know you these last two days, and you're not like them."

Claire blushed. "And what about now, Peter? What do you see?" she wondered.

Before he could even answer, Claire's lips touched his. Peter bent down, kissing her back. Claire let out a small breath before he kissed her again.

tbc


	16. Chapter 16

Because You Found Me

Chapter 16

By obi's girl

Peter slowly pulled away from Claire. For a brief moment, he felt at peace, letting all the world slip away. Kissing Claire…it was different from kissing Simone. At the time, he had thought that Simone was perfect, but then he had met Claire. This extraordinary girl with the power to heal herself had healed him too. But she was still a girl, and that was why he was hesitant to act on his feelings.

Claire sighed, and for a minute she wondered if Peter regretted kissing her. As if reading her thoughts, he lightly touched her cheek and smiled at her. "Peter," she said softly, "I'm sorry. I know it's crazy, but I felt this connection toward you…I didn't know what it was, and I guess I got caught up in the moment."

"No, Claire," Peter whispered, "there's no need for you to be sorry. I'm the one. I should have showed more restraint."

Claire regretfully stepped away from him and sat on the edge of the bed, holding her hands in her lap. Part of that statement was true. Lately, she'd been feeling more than friendly toward him, and had mistaken that friendliness with something more. But she kept on reminding herself that it was just a crush and nothing else. Until now. She looked briefly at Peter, and once he caught her gaze, Claire looked away and directed her attention to her hands.

Peter started to leave, but stopped when he heard her ask him something. Claire still didn't look at him. "How can this work if we're both attracted to each other?" she wondered aloud.

He shrugged, staring after her. "We'll find a way, Claire," Peter assured her, but he had to admit that wasn't even sure himself how their new living arrangement could work after this. Peter sighed and started to leave, but Claire called out to him again.

_//Why couldn't I just leave and forget this happened//_ Peter asked himself. He looked back at Claire.

Claire finally turned and facing him, looked at him pleadingly. "Are you still my hero?" she asked.

Peter smiled. "Always, Claire," he whispered back and left.

Mr. Bennet waited calmly outside headquarters for Detective Elisa Thayer to arrive. Normally he'd keep his distance from the authorities because of his activities, but he needed this problem taken care of before leaving for New York to find Claire. A woman with long, brown hair, pale skin, and dark brown eyes approached him. "Mr. Bennet, I'm Detective Elisa Thayer, the leader investigator on the Sylar case," she said. "You said that Sylar has escaped and may possibly go after your daughter again. Why do you think that?"

"Because he wasn't able to finish the job last time," he replied. "Naturally, being the serial killer that he is, he probably wants to finish what he started. But I know something that he doesn't know."

Thayer studied Bennet carefully. She had heard about the events at homecoming and Sylar going after the cheerleader. Since then, that night had become a legend in Odessa. Less than a week after that night, everyone knew about it – the students at Claire's school, the town and even the media. The media especially were very curious about it, and sucked up any detail that was handed to them, no matter the source. Of course, it wasn't part of her job to offer comment to the media about that night. She wasn't a reporter.

"What do you know that Sylar doesn't know?" she questioned.

"That my daughter has run away," Mr. Bennet added. "She ran away two days ago, long before Sylar escaped from his prison."

Thayer sighed and asked a passing cop to give her any missing children reports that had been filed in the last two days. If Claire had run away, then it should have been filed, but she had a feeling that it wasn't, and somehow knew who made sure that it wasn't.

Audrey moaned as she fumbled, looking for her cell phone. Matt spotted it on the dashboard and handed it to her. She checked the caller ID and moaned again when she realized it was from the Sheriff's department in Odessa. Audrey motioned to Matt to be quiet as she answered the call.

"This is Detective Hanson speaking," she said.

Thayer turned away from Mr. Bennet as she held her cell. All of the missing children's reports were in front of her, and not one of them had Claire's name on it. "Detective Hanson, you better have a good explanation why you forgot to file a missing children's report on a 'Claire Bennet,'" she growled. "And where are you?"

Audrey held her cell phone away from her and put her hand over the speaker part. She mouthed her name to Matt and he shrieked. "I'm sorry, sir, but a police officer should have done that, not an F.B.I officer," she said.

Thayer said some things under her breath and then picked up her cell phone again. "You still didn't answer my question, detective. Where are you?" she questioned again.

Audrey covered the mouthpiece again and looked over at Matt. Neither of them had filed a missing persons' report for Claire, which meant that someone else had brought it to her attention that Claire went missing. That someone had to be Mr. Bennet. He wanted them off Claire's case so he wouldn't have too many problems to deal with when he came to New York.

"I'm investigating a lead in–" she drifted off and then quickly grabbed a map from the glove compartment. Which state was next door to Texas? "Oklahoma," Audrey cried. "I'm in Oklahoma."

"What lead?!" Thayer shot back. "The Sylar case is closed – or was closed."

"Was? It's not closed anymore?" Audrey asked, looking at Matt. "What happened?"

Before she answered, Audrey put down her cell phone and set it on speaker phone. If Sylar had escaped, then she wanted Matt to know as well. "He escaped from custody yesterday. Assuming he's been at large a very short time, he hasn't time to wander very far," Thayer reasoned, and then raised her tone to an authoritative voice. "Hanson, stay in Oklahoma. We'll continue the search here. Let me knew if you find him and we'll set up a meeting to take him in."

"Yes ma'am," Audrey replied, and cut off the call. Matt took the map from her and put it back into the glove compartment. If Sylar had escaped, then he would want to go after Claire. Audrey didn't need to say anything to Matt as he turned on the engine and raced down the street to Peter's apartment.

tbc


	17. Chapter 17

Because You Found Me

Chapter 17

By obi's girl

Thayer shut off her cell phone and turned back to Mr. Bennet, ignoring the pile of missing persons' reports in front of her. There were a lot of things that didn't make sense at that moment. Why hadn't a missing persons' report been filed on Claire? Why hadn't Mr. Bennet followed through and make sure one was filed? Why was it that the second officer in charge on the Sylar investigation was in another state? These questions were starting to give Thayer a headache.

"Mr. Bennet, I apologize for this inconvenience," she said, "but I promise you two things: First, that we will find Sylar and put him behind bars where he belongs and secondly, that we will find your daughter. It will be this station's utmost priority."

Mr. Bennet smiled and shook her hand. "Thank you, Detective Thayer," he said and checked his watch. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I'm late for a flight to New York. I have some business to take care of in there, but you'll keep me posted on your investigation?"

"Of course," she replied.

Audrey hurriedly flipped through the telephone book as Matt parked his car across the street from Peter's apartment. She found Peter's name and picked up her cell phone again, dialing his number, and then handed her phone to Matt. He reluctantly took it.

Peter was about to sit down and watch some TV, anything to keep his mind off Claire, when his phone started ringing. Peter stood, walked over and picked it up. He expected it to be Nathan, to continue their argument from before, but he was surprised when Matt's voice came over the speaker piece. Peter looked back at Claire's room, but she hadn't come out.

"Peter, is Claire there? If she is, just act naturally. She can't know that it's me on the other end. Yell into the mouth piece the way you'd yell at Nathan if it was him," Matt instructed him.

Peter sighed and held the phone away. "Nathan, I don't have time to argue with you right now!" he yelled and then held the phone close to his mouth again.

"Listen carefully," Matt said evenly. "My partner and I just received word that the Sylar case is not closed. He's escaped, and most likely, his goal will be to finish what he started and kill Claire. There's something else that you need to know, Peter."

Peter breathed slowly as Matt went on. "Mr. Bennet is coming to find you," he finished.

Peter sighed. This day was getting worse and worse. First his problem with Claire, and now her father, and some crazy psycho killer was coming to finish his job. What else could possibly happen to make matters worse?

Matt picked up on that last thought but shook his head. "Peter, are you still there?" he asked.

"I have to go now, Nathan," he said hopelessly, and hung up the phone.

tbc


	18. Chapter 18

Because You Found Me

Chapter 18

By obi's girl

Peter needed to think carefully. Matt and Audrey had taken care of the Haitian and had him stowed away somewhere, Sylar was loose, and Mr. Bennet was on his way to get Claire. By bus, it would take Mr. Bennet a whole day, maybe two or three. Sylar was most likely on foot and was probably still somewhere in Texas, searching for Claire. Peter doubted that Sylar had left the state to search elsewhere for her. He probably thought that after the events of homecoming she was still in state, attending school.

Claire finally came out of her room and went up to Peter. He jumped slightly as she tapped his shoulder. "Peter," she said, "we're roommates, and I don't want there to be any weirdness between us, so I'm just going to take my stuff and look for a place around the neighborhood to stay."

"What?" he cried. Honestly, he was more worried about Mr. Bennet finding her all alone in some run down hotel.

"I think it's better this way, Peter," Claire whispered. "I don't want to be a burden…"

"Burden?" he choked. "Claire, no. You are not a burden."

Claire fidgeted and looked at him carefully. "I can't," she said and gestured back to his room. "It's not fair that I get your room and you have to stay out here in the living room."

Peter smiled. "That's no big deal, Claire. I actually prefer the couch to my bed. It's more comfy," he said and frowned, wondering if he should tell her about Matt's call, but decided to worry about that later. Claire couldn't leave. He had to get her to stay. "Stay, Claire. Don't leave," he pleaded with her.

"Peter…I'm not sure that's a good idea," Claire admitted, walking away from him.

Peter went after her, taking her arm and pulling her closer to him. "Stay," he said simply. Before Claire could object, Peter leaned down and kissed her again.

Elisa Thayer carefully looked over the report on the events at homecoming. Peter Petrelli was arrested for the murder of Jackie Wilcox, but after further DNA testing, it was found that the blood that covered his body was in fact his own, and not Jackie's. Sylar was suspected of having killed Jackie, but he seemed to have disappeared after that night. The Bennet's had left in a hurry after initial questioning, but returned the next day for a follow-up. And now, all of the sudden, Mr. Bennet knew that Sylar had escaped.

Still, if Sylar had been arrested, she would have known about it. Some officers would have told her, but they wouldn't have told her if it weren't officers who arrested him and took him into custody.

Thayer pulled aside a cop and glanced down at his insignia. "Mr. Bennet hasn't left yet has he?" she asked.

The cop shrugged. "I don't know, ma'am," he admitted.

"If he's still nearby, which I suspect he is, I want him brought in for questioning," she instructed him. Thayer let the officer go and find Mr. Bennet.

Claire slowly pulled away from Peter, breathing deeply. The second kiss was definitely better than the first, but Claire also felt that there was another reason for it. She looked at Peter and moved away from him, leaning on back of the couch instead. Something was up. Peter stood uncomfortably, replaying in his head what Matt told him. He knew that he had to protect Claire. But he couldn't tell her what was happening…yet.

"Claire…I…" Peter tried to explain but couldn't figure out what to say to her. "Please stay."

"Why?" she asked. "Why should I stay, Peter?"

He shrugged. "Because I want you to stay, Claire," he said. "It'll give us time to reflect on our feelings for each other, and then we can decide where this is really going." Peter thought about what he said and prayed that Claire bought his explanation.

She studied him carefully. Claire hadn't known Peter too long, but she definitely felt that there was something more that he wasn't telling her. She used to have that feeling when she was around her father. "Peter," Claire stepped toward him, looking up at him, "Is there something you're not telling me?"

"It's nothing, Claire. Don't worry about it," he replied, still staring at her.

"Peter, what is it?" she wondered. "What's going on?"

Peter hesitated. If what he thought earlier was true, then there was no reason to alert Claire until he had more details, but by then, it might be too late. Claire wished that she could read his thoughts then, and know what was going on.

Then she looked over at the phone and remembered hearing Peter talking to Nathan. Claire flashed back to her conversation with Nathan when Peter was downstairs. He said that he would do everything possible to get rid of Claire and make her go back to Texas. Was that it? Did Nathan call to warn him that police were on the way to his apartment to pick her up and send her back home?

"Was it Nathan on the phone?" she asked. "What did he say to you?!"

Peter looked over at the phone and then at Claire. "Claire, come here and sit down," he said slowly, but Claire didn't move.

She only stared after him – hurt and betrayed that she was going back to that house of lies. "How could you let him send me back there?" Claire cried. "You know what my father's capable of and you still let Nathan do that?!"

"I didn't let Nathan do anything, Claire," he said forcefully. "I wasn't even talking to Nathan—" He stopped there and moaned, realizing what he'd just said.

Claire frowned. If it wasn't Nathan he was talking to earlier, then who was it? Her first thought was that it was her father on the phone, but that didn't seem likely and she didn't think that her father knew Peter's home phone number. It had to be someone locally. Claire stood up straight and looked at him coolly, holding her hand on her hip. "All right. Then who was it, Peter?" she asked icily.

"A friend," he said. "He warned me about your father coming here. He said that there no was no need to tell you just yet."

tbc


	19. Chapter 19

Because You Found Me

Chapter 19

By obi's girl

"Why did you lie to me Peter? Especially after I told you that I hated that my father lied to me for years…" Claire questioned, not willing to give up so easily on this. There was more to what was going on. He still hadn't answered her question about whom it was he had been talking to on the phone. Peter claimed it wasn't Nathan, but then who else could it be? "Peter, I want the truth."

Peter hesitated. "Claire," he started, "I'm sorry I lied to you earlier. I just didn't want you to worry. You came here, to me, because you thought that I would keep you safe. Because I saved you at homecoming. But the truth is, I'm scared if I can even do that." He sat down on the couch and brushed his hand through his long bangs.

Claire frowned and came over, sitting beside him. She hadn't realized the amount of pressure she put on him by coming there, but really, she had nowhere else to go. Claire didn't have Zack to confide in about her powers anymore, or even Lyle. For days, she walked around that house in a daze, not really knowing what she was going to happen next. It felt like walking on eggshells when she was around her father, and Claire hated that feeling so much.

A few weeks ago, she knew that she had to hide her secret from her father, and now she regretted ever telling him, more than anything else. But now she felt guilty about putting Peter in this position of having to protect her.

Claire hesitantly reached out and touched his hand. "Peter, I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Five weeks ago, when this all started, I was so excited. To fly like Superman in the comic books – er, that's what I thought I could do. That was actually Nathan's power, not mine. It seemed so much more glamorous to have a power like that than to be a hospice nurse," he mused.

"Nothing ever is so glamorous, Peter," she said, "but I wasn't wrong about what I said to you in Odessa."

Peter looked at skeptically. "Are you sure?" he wondered.

Claire smiled thoughtfully. "I'm sure."

Mr. Bennet glanced one more time at the clock hanging on the station wall. He should have been on the road already, but instead, he was sitting in a corner of the police station, being questioned by Detective Thayer. The session was being recorded by another police officer.

"Tell me again, Mr. Bennet, how you knew that Sylar had escaped, and where exactly is his is prison located?" Thayer asked.

"I work for a special part of that government that monitors people like Sylar, and if sometimes we get lucky, we study them," he said. Really, he shouldn't have been there, but he needed to know the status of Claire's case, and also report on Sylar. Now he was starting to see that the latter part was a very bad idea. If Thayer didn't buy what he was saying, then either he'd be locked up in a mental institution or imprisoned indefinitely for keeping a wanted murderer from the law. "I can't reveal any more details than that, Detective."

"Then why did you bother and come here if you didn't want to be found out?" she countered. "No. You know something about Sylar and why these killings are happening, and I'm not going to let you leave until I know exactly about the type of man I've been hunting for the past six months."

Mr. Bennet studied Thayer carefully. "Have you visited the morgue lately, Detective?" he asked.

Thayer frowned. That wasn't exactly the answer she was looking for but she supposed that there was a reason why he brought it up. "No, I haven't," she admitted.

"Because one of my associates is dead. Sylar didn't kill her, but he was going to. He wanted something of hers, but she wouldn't let him have it, so she took the gun she brought with her and turned it on herself," Mr. Bennet explained.

He'd watched the security cameras of the deadly confrontation between Sylar and Eden. He knew that Eden wanted to take justice into her own hands and kill the man who had killed so many. She foolishly thought that with her persuasive powers she could make him kill himself. Maybe it would have worked if Sylar hadn't recognized her and realized her intentions. "Look for Eden McCain, Detective."

Thayer looked at the reporter, and then at Mr. Bennet. "I know you know where Sylar is, and I also know that you know where Claire might be," she said and waved in another police officer. "You are under arrest for the aided escape of Sylar, Mr. Bennet."

tbc


	20. Chapter 20

Because You Found Me   
Chapter 20  
By obi's girl

"I don't want you to feel that you have to hide anything from me, Peter," Claire continued. "We're roommates now. It's going to take some getting used to, and I'm sure that there will be many memorable moments we'll both wish to forget, but no more secrets, Peter. None at all." 

Peter studied Claire closely. He didn't want there to be secrets between them, either, and if Claire was going to stay at his place for a while, he couldn't hide from her anymore about what was coming. He needed to at least warn her. "Claire, there is something that you need to know," he started. For a moment, he flashed back to those few minutes on the subway when a future Hiro came to him and told him about the explosion, and Claire, of course. He hadn't had the chance to tell her in Odessa, but now he had Claire's full attention.

But how to break it to her that the explosion that Hiro prophesied was because of him?

_It doesn't have to be now, does it? I don't have to tell her now,_ Peter theorized. _I'll find a way to control my powers, and I won't have to tell her._

"Peter, what is it?"

Peter smiled. "Nothing…you want to rent a DVD? I know a place not far from here that rents DVD's very cheaply."

Claire looked at him skeptically. "You're a very bad liar, Peter Petrelli, do you know that?" she joked.

He shrugged. "What can I say? I've always been a boy scout at heart." 

"Okay," she conceded, "I won't press you anymore about whatever is on your mind. Let me grab a sweater and I'll be right out." Claire jumped off from the couch and ran back to her room. She came back out a second later wearing a pink jumper, and fixed her hair into a ponytail. Peter grabbed his keys and the two left.

Ten minutes later, Peter and Claire raced back up the stairs to his apartment. Foolishly, Peter hadn't checked the weather before deciding to take Claire out and rent a DVD for them to watch together. And in New York, weather was often very unpredictable, but he did remember watching the news earlier that morning and the weatherman saying that there was a chance for a small shower in the afternoon.

Claire went to the couch, undid her hair and put the tie in her pants pocket. Her jumper wasn't too badly soaked from the rain, only slightly. Peter went to the linen closet and came back with two towels. Her handed one two Claire and used the other to dry himself off.

"Sorry about that, Claire," he apologized.

Claire smirked, hurriedly drying parts of her hair. "That's all right. I guess rain will have to be one of those New York things I'll have to get used to," she joked, and happened to glance at the TV in front of them. "Since we're stuck here, do you have a TV guide?" 

Peter looked behind the coach and spotted it, sitting on the dining table. He stood up, brought it over and gave it to Claire. Claire looked at the date and then started flipping through the pages. "Anything good?" Peter wondered.

"Not much," she offered and then proceeded to look at what DVD movies Peter owned. Some of the DVD's he'd borrowed from Nathan and forgotten to return, and others he'd bought himself.

Claire had a somewhat annoyed expression on her face as she looked through his collection, and instinctively knew it was because there was no suitable movie for a girl to watch. They were all action/adventure. She sighed and finally settled on one, popping it into the DVD player. Claire sat back on the couch, handing Peter the DVD cover. 

He wandered which one she'd chosen and then smiled once the Disney logo appeared on screen, accompanied by the DVD menu and random pictures from the movie.

"I've had a crush on Johnny Depp for, like, forever," Claire mused as she hit the 'play' option and the movie started. "And Pirates of the Caribbean is definitely one of his finest works."

Peter shrugged. "I've always been partial to Edward Scissorhands. He's a man with scissors as hands, but with a big heart," he joked. 

Claire hmm'd and didn't say anything as the first scene came up.

tbc


	21. Chapter 21

Because You Found (Chapter 21)  
by obi's girl

A half an hour into the movie, Claire noticed that Peter was in deep thought, and she doubted that whatever he was thinking had nothing to do with the movie. Obviously, he was still thinking about before, but Claire couldn't help but be curious a little.

"You've been awfully quiet over there," she noted

Once Peter realized it was Claire's voice, he snapped to attention. The first thing he saw was a dark cave filled with gold, several cursed pirates and a British girl in a velvet dress staring in horror at the pirates before her. He then peered over at Claire, who was patiently waiting for an answer from him, but he really had no idea what she'd asked.

"Peter? Peter?" she asked, and then sat up, pausing the DVD. Pirates and gold and damsels in distress would have to wait. And Johnny Depp. "Are you still feeling guilty about earlier?"

Peter blinked, still lost in the conversation. If he felt guilty about anything, it was that he did not know what Claire was talking about. But he thought he'd play along anyway. "Guilty about earlier? No. Why should I?"

Claire put down the DVD remote and leaned back on the couch, crossing her arms. "Peter, I...I don't blame you if that's what you're thinking about."

"Then I blame myself," he shot back.

Claire didn't say anything for minute, only stared at him. Peter couldn't figure out if she was angry with him or simply speechless, or both. Then, a smile curled at her lips. "You have no idea what I was talking about before, do you?"

Peter swiped at his bangs. He didn't want to admit to her that it was true, but he felt silly for acknowledging that it wasn't. Claire suddenly started giggling.

"What?" he groaned.

"You're so adorable Peter," she laughed. "Just now, I wish you could have seen the expression on your face. It was priceless!"

Peter glared back at her. He'd been called many things in his life, but adorable wasn't one of them. The way Claire said it, it made him feel like he was another one of the stuffed animals she had when she was a baby.

"I'm not adorable; I'm cute," he retorted. However, after thinking over his retort, Peter realized that what he'd said didn't make much sense, either. And Claire continued to laugh harder; she even had to wipe tears from her eyes. "That's not funny," he said.

Claire wiped more tears from her eyes and smiled at him. "I'm sorry, Peter, but it was very funny, even if you didn't mean it to be."

Peter nodded his head and then plunged toward Claire, tackling her to the couch and tickling her. Claire yelped as he did, but she soon caught on and made a counter attack, tickling the skin beneath his shirt. Only when Peter nearly collapsed on top of her did he realize the dangerous position they were in.

Claire soon realized the same thing and stopped laughing. She stared back at him, unsure what to say. Peter didn't know what to say, either, and he knew that he should have moved away, but he didn't. Instead, he studied Claire's face.

For her part, Claire must have sensed what he was feeling, because she leaned up and kissed him tenderly. Peter kissed her back gently, running his hands through her golden hair. Claire sighed, but slowly pulled away, studying him. Everything about that moment was perfect, except for one thing -- the same one thing that still hung over their heads and set the boundary of their relationship.

"Should we be doing this?" Claire wondered aloud.

Peter looked down at their positions. His whole body covered Claire's, and there was no boundary between them, other than their clothes. Then, it hit him. Peter slowly moved off her and distanced himself, moving all the way to the opposite end of the couch. Claire looked back at the TV and then at Peter.

_This was the third time_, Claire realized. _We can't ignore this anymore_.

They had to talk about this now, otherwise there would be many more compromising positions—and even worse, if something happened in front of their friends. "Peter, we need to talk about this," Claire started.

He glanced at her, still not feeling comfortable talking about it, but he knew that Claire was right. "Okay," he conceded. He waited for Claire to say something, because he didn't know what to say.

"So, does this attraction mean anything?" Claire questioned. "I mean, I had a crush on you in the beginning but of what you did but it was inevitable, too, I think. You saved me when I didn't even know that I needed to be saved. 'Save the cheerleader, save the world,'" she quoted.

"But this can't happen, Claire," he said. He secretly wanted to add 'yet,' but he realized that he'd be leading her on if he mentioned that there was a possibility that they could be something more. But maybe he wasn't that far off. Maybe if Claire were eighteen now, he would be with her. As it was, she was still a minor.

Claire tilted her head, looking at him thoughtfully. "You know, it would be so easy for a girl to fall in love with her hero," she said and blinked, bringing herself out of the spell, "but considering the circumstances, I think the best course of action would be to remain friends...for now."

Peter smiled. "Agreed."

Claire sighed and turned off the DVD player. "I'm glad we had this talk," she mused and stood up. Peter stood up too, and Claire moved aside and walked past him to her bedroom. She turned briefly and smiled sweetly. "We can finish the movie tomorrow," she whispered.

"Goodnight Claire," Peter said.

"Goodnight Peter," she whispered back.

As soon as Claire closed her door, she started crying, and held a hand to her mouth so Peter wouldn't hear her. She spotted her sleepwear on the dresser and quickly changed into them, climbing into bed and covering the blanket over her head as she cried into her pillow.

tbc


	22. Chapter 22

Because You Found Me (Chapter 22)

By obi's girl

The sweet aroma from the kitchen teased Claire's senses, and she couldn't help but wake up and make her way to the kitchen. Peter was already there, of course, cooking eggs and bacon. He really didn't have to wake up early just to make her breakfast, but it was a sweet gesture. Her mother did that every day, but there were always extra curricular activities that pulled her and Lyle away, so she had settled for a toasted bagel and juice and she was ready to go.

Claire leaned against the wall, staring at Peter dreamily. She'd gone to bed early the previous night, right after their conversation. But as soon as Claire was beneath her blankets, she cried for a total of four hours. She hadn't been able to admit it, but saying those things to him was the hardest thing she'd ever done.

Claire truly cared about him, and maybe during the last two days her feelings for him had grown from a teenage crush to full-blown love, but there was the matter of age. Her birthday wasn't for a couple more months. But Claire realized if she was going to be staying with Peter indefinitely, it was going to be a struggle every day. They were clearly attracted to each other, but whatever their feelings, they had to hold on.

After all, it couldn't have been easy for him either, Claire realized.

Peter finally turned and noticed her there. He smiled and turned off the stove, holding two plates in his arms. "Hey, I didn't know you were there," he said, setting the plates on the table.

Claire took her usual seat across from him. Plates, utensils and an orange juice carton sat in the middle of the table, along with a pile of napkins. "You didn't have to do this again," she said. "I'm perfectly fine with bagels, strawberry jam and juice," she added.

Peter shrugged, sitting down. "Sorry, I can't help it. Us Italians – we like to eat," he joked. "And you've been so stressed lately – I didn't want to burden you with cooking your own breakfast."

"As if handling hot pans would be a burden," she joked. "Cooking burns don't bother me."

"Well, it's still polite to let me handle breakfast for a while. I promise that next time it's bagels."

Claire smiled at him thoughtfully as she continued to eat her food. She realized that if Peter kept up this gentleman routine any longer, by next week, she would be head-over-heels in love with him and then after that, there would be no turning back.

Matt kept his distance as Audrey signed papers to check up on the Haitian. For the past three days, he had been locked up in a cell in the Manhattan Police Department, arrested on attempted kidnapping. For his part, Matt had no doubt that the Haitian was guilty of other crimes, but he couldn't prove that and it frustrated him. He wasn't too fond of Mr. Bennet, either, for what the man had done to him.

Finally, they were taken to his cell. Matt and Audrey specifically requested that the Haitian have his own cell, but didn't mention why. It was, of course, so he couldn't wipe anyone else's mind with his abilities, even though Matt wasn't certain that he could do that to ordinary people.

The Haitian was leaning against the wall of his cell as the guard on duty opened the cell, letting Audrey and Matt in. On the way over, Matt agreed to let Audrey do all the questioning and for him to read the man's thoughts, but Matt wasn't sure if he could get a clear read from the Haitian. He seemed to be able to block his psyche without strain.

Audrey got straight to the point. "Why are you here?"

The Haitian continued to study Matt, ignoring her question. Audrey looked back at Matt and then to the Haitian. "All right…I'll ask again. Why are you here in New York?" she questioned.

The Haitian finally looked at her. "I was sent," he said.

"By whom? Mr. Bennet? Why did he send you?"

"His daughter ran away, and he sent me to retrieve her."

Audrey glanced at Matt again, and then looked back at the Haitian. "Why? Mr. Bennet called us and instructed us to find her. Why did he need to contact you to find her? He doesn't trust us, is that it?"

The Haitian remained silent. For as long as he could remember, he had worked for Claire's father, and never questioned his dealings, because they came from above. But once Mr. Bennet found out about Claire and told him about her, the Haitian knew that there was a reason why he had been chosen. "Mr. Bennet loves his daughter. He called you because it was routine to report her missing, but he summoned me to New York because he knew that this is where she had gone. He needed someone who could bring her back safely."

"Is that why he chose you? Or is there another reason?"

"That's not the question on your mind, Detective," he said. "There's something else that you want to ask me, but you're hesitant to."

Matt came forward. "You know why Claire was targeted, don't you…because you know about him. All of these people that Sylar has murdered, he's slit their heads open and taken their brains out. Why? What makes these people so special?" he questioned.

Actually, Matt already knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from the Haitian. In turn, the Haitian studied him again. "For the same reason why Sylar would go after you, Officer Parkman. Yours and Claire's abilities are very special and very powerful," he said.

"Wait," he breathed, "Claire has an ability? That's why he sent you here? Because you're like her?"

"My assignment was to bring Claire home, and in the process, wipe her memories. That is what her father wants, but I wasn't going to take her memories."

Audrey frowned. "Why not? What changed your mind?"

The Haitian leaned off the wall and straightened his coat. "Because Claire has a destiny greater than all of us. Her powers, her abilities – whatever you want to call them – she has them for a reason. We all have a reason, Officer Parkman," he said, and looked directly at Matt. "Even you. God gave us these abilities for a purpose."

Matt was taken aback. For once, he believed what the Haitian was saying, but he still felt uneasy. "If you had been successful and found Claire, how could she fulfill her destiny in Odessa?" he wondered.

"She would find a way; she's a very resourceful girl," he mused. "Mr. Bennet loves his daughter, and he only wants what's best for her, but in this case, his motives are selfish. He wants her to remain his baby girl forever, but that's impossible. If I erase Claire's memory of the past few days, she would still discover her abilities at a later date. When that time comes, I would be told to erase her memory again and again. But I can't do that to her."

"Because she's special, right?" Audrey retorted.

"Because she is special," he defended. "Claire deserves the chance to know who she is and why this happened to her. Mr. Bennet wants to take that away from her, and I won't allow that."

Audrey looked back at Matt briefly. "You've been in here a long time…are you sure you're not just saying this so we'll let you go?" she shot back.

"I've had a lot of time to think, Detective Hanson," he said. "What happened to Claire at homecoming convinced me that whatever happens, she can't forget it because it's important that she remember. So it will give her strength to move on."

tbc


	23. Chapter 23

Because You Found Me (Chapter 23)  
By obi's girl

As soon as Peter started washing the dishes, his phone rang. He laughed to himself, mentally making a note to himself to either change his number or make it private. He'd been getting way too many phone calls in the last three days. Peter picked up the phone, not really knowing who it would be on the other end.

It turned out to be Isaac Mendez.

"Peter, you need to come by the studio as soon as you can," he said. "I've painted something."

He glanced at his watch and then looked back toward Claire's bedroom. "I might be awhile, Isaac. I have a house guest," he said.

"I thought you quit nursing," he questioned. "Who is it?" 

"It's Claire," he whispered. Isaac was silent for a moment. Peter took his silence to mean that he had no idea whom he was referring to, but then Peter remembered that he hadn't contacted Isaac after coming back from Odessa. "The cheerleader." 

"She's there now?" he asked.

Peter waved his hand, taking the phone and settled on the couch. "She's not right next to me, no. She's in her room -- er – rather my room. I let her have it," he said. "Why? Do you have a painting that has to do with Claire?"

"No. It's about you, Peter," he said. "Just come over as soon as you can. You can bring Claire with you if you want. Actually, I want to meet her, if it's possible."

Peter grinned. "Sure, I'll bring her over," he said, and hung up the phone. Soon after hanging up, Peter thought over his words. He didn't even know what Isaac's painting was about. If it had to do with the explosion and Claire saw it…she would be horrified. But being a person who never broke promises, he went back to Claire's room. Isaac wanted to meet her, and Hiro and Ando were probably there, too.

He gently knocked on her door. Claire scrambled to her feet and opened up, smiling at him. "I just got a call from a friend. He's an artist. I'm going over to meet him…do you want to come?" he wondered.

Claire shrugged. "Sure, I don't mind," she said, grabbing a sweater.

On the way over to Isaac's studio, Peter explained about him to Claire -- that he was actually like them. He had abilities too, and because of him, Peter had been able to find Claire and save her in time. Claire instantly became fascinated at the prospect of meeting someone new with abilities. The minute she walked into Isaac's studio, she knew what Peter was talking about when he said that he was a "unique artist."

Various canvases littered the studio, and there was even one large painting on the floor of the studio. Of course, Claire hadn't really noticed what it was, because her attention was drawn to the various paintings. Then, she spotted it...er...rather herself. She was running away from a shadowed man, wearing her cheerleading outfit, which was drenched in blood.

_Homecoming,_ Claire realized. _He painted me at homecoming._

Peter walked over to Isaac, who was talking to two other figures. As Peter and Claire came closer, they were able to make out who the two figures were: two Japanese men. The shorter one noticed Claire first and smiled broadly at her. Isaac turned around and greeted his new visitors. "You made it. Good," he said and turned back to his other two guests. "Peter, meet Ando and Hiro Nakamura." 

Peter grinned and shook their hands. Hiro Nakamura. It looked like him, but it wasn't the same Hiro he'd seen on the subway. This Hiro didn't have his long hair in a ponytail, and he lacked the same air of confidence and wisdom the future possessed. But Peter surmised that it probably wouldn't take long for the future Hiro to manifest himself in this younger version.

Claire looked over the three new heroes in front of her. At first, there was Peter, then Nathan, and now three other heroes with abilities. "You must be Claire, the cheerleader," Isaac said, addressing Claire. "I have to tell you, we are all happy that you're alive. A friend told me that Peter saved you."

"Ando and I arrived late at your school. There were police everywhere, and they said that there was a murder. We thought you had died, that the brain man got you," Hiro said, and his face fell, remembering one of his recent failures. Not being able to save Charlie and then Claire made him question his heroism. But now Claire was alive.

"How did you survive? Obviously, it wasn't you who was killed --" Isaac started saying, but Peter quickly gestured that he drop it.

But Claire smiled thankfully at him. Claire thought that the horrible night of Jackie's murder would always be with her, but lately, the memory was starting to fade, and didn't bother her as much as it had a couple days ago. "She was also a cheerleader. 'The brain man' thought she was me," she explained.

Hiro smiled again. "I am very happy that you're here," he said and stepped forward, hugging Claire tightly. The hug took Claire off guard, but she hugged him back and even laughed a little. Peter grinned as Hiro moved away.

"So Isaac, what was it that you wanted me to see?" Peter asked.

Isaac showed them a medium sized canvas. It was a run down shack with bursts of light streaking out into the night sky. "I think it's somewhere in the desert, maybe Nevada or Texas. But whoever it is, he's very powerful," he said.

As Peter examined the painting, his mind flashed back to his dreams. It was the same light from the explosion, but it couldn't have been him, because he'd never been to the desert. Could it have been another hero?

"I don't understand," Claire said, looking over the portrait. "What does this have to do with Peter?"

Isaac, Hiro and Ando stared at her, dumbfounded. Claire couldn't understand what they were talking about because Peter hadn't told her. Hiro was the first to say something. "You don't know about the exploding man?" he asked. 

Before Claire could ask him, he moved aside and showed her the portrait he was referring to. Claire looked carefully at the portrait. It looked like that superhero from Fantastic Four movie. Then she looked at the portrait Isaac showed them. "Is this guy the guy in the shed?" she wondered.

"We're not sure...yet," Peter added.

Claire turned to him curiously. "Well, you said that you weren't sure that you'd survive that fall from the amphitheater, but you did because you copied my ability to heal," she said, and it dawned on her. "Peter..." Claire looked again at both paintings and then stepped away from him. "It's you, isn't it? You're the one. The exploding man?"

Isaac set the painting aside. He could understand Claire's surprise and horror at the prospect that her roommate of three days was a walking time bomb. Peter took Claire aside, but she brushed his hand away. "You shouldn't touch me, Peter. If you absorb any more abilities, you will become that man," she said coolly and looked up at him with sad eyes. "How could you not tell me about this? I asked you -- no -- I begged you, no more lies, no more secrets. My whole life has been one big lie, Peter!" she cried.

"I was going to tell you, Claire," he said. "I just -- you called me your hero...I didn't want to scare you."

Claire nodded. "No, Peter," she continued, "of all the people, I least expected this from you...it makes me wonder what else you've lied about..." 

Before Peter could say something, someone else burst into the studio. Claire, Peter, Isaac, Hiro and Ando turned, and Peter cringed when he realized it was Matt and Audrey. Matt spotted Peter and came over to him. "We followed you," he said. "I hope you don't mind, but I need to ask you something, Peter."

Claire's eyes widened, and she dreaded what would come next. "Do you have an ability?" Peter wondered.

"Maybe he does," Claire said. "Why are you asking?"

Matt turned to Claire; she'd crossed her arms and hovered close to Peter protectively, a drastic change of attitude from a few minutes ago. Peter shrugged and Matt studied Claire, trying to get a read on her. 

_Hey, I recognize this guy...he was in Odessa...Oh My God, does he work for my dad?!_ Claire mentally cried.

"No, Claire, I don't work for your father, but he did send us to find you," Matt said, looking at Audrey. "I know your secret, Claire. Audrey and I were just talking to the Haitian, and he told us about you."

Claire looked at Peter and he nodded guiltily. "I can't believe this," she muttered, "This is insane...I'm only seventeen years old...I should be worrying about studying for my SAT's and deciding what college to attend...not New York blowing up..." she cried and hung her head low. _And most of all, losing Peter. I can't lose Peter. Especially when I think I'm falling in lo—_

Matt looked at Claire suddenly; he knew that Claire had a crush on Peter, but when had that crush turned into love? Did Peter know? Probably not, but Matt sensed the same feelings in the other man as well; it was tearing Peter apart.

"I can't believe this," Claire cried, moving away from the group. Peter looked at her, but she only sighed, and before he could tell everything was going to be all right, Claire bolted from the studio. 

tbc


	24. Chapter 24

Because You Found Me (Chapter 24)  
By obi's girl

Almost as soon as she exited the studio, Claire ran into Nathan. He wasn't alone. There was a black woman with him, but she didn't recognize Claire as the blonde cheerleader from Isaac's paintings, which was probably because she wasn't wearing her uniform. Nathan, however, was already acquainted with Claire, and knew that if she was at Isaac's studio, then that meant that Peter was inside.

"Where's Peter?" he demanded, holding her wrists.

Claire scowled, breaking free of him. "You knew about this, didn't you?" she questioned, the scratches on her skin healing themselves. "You knew Peter was a walking time bomb!"

The woman beside him looked at Nathan and went ahead inside the studio. Nathan sighed, and regretfully nodded yes. Claire couldn't believe what was happening. Why couldn't have Peter told her? If she was important to saving the future, maybe she could have helped him. Nathan calmly led Claire back inside the warehouse, though she was still visibly shaken.

Peter was surprised to see his brother with Claire, but was glad that she'd bumped into him. If Claire had run off and something had happened to her, he didn't know what he'd do. He turned his attention back to the group. Simone was talking with Isaac as he showed her the new painting. Oddly, their newfound closeness didn't bother him as much. Maybe it was because he hadn't seen much of Simone lately and had become more attached to Claire.

He turned his attention back to the group in general. Matt and Audrey were examining the painting more closely, and Peter could make out a faint smile on Matt's face as he looked it. "Wait a minute, you recognize this guy, don't you?" he asked him suddenly.

Audrey looked back at her partner skeptically. "We know someone like this," she said. "He escaped custody awhile ago, but we're not sure its him."

"Cut it, Hanson," Matt said. "You know its Ted. Just look at the streaks of light; that's radiation. At least now we know where he is, and that he's far away from people."

"If he's in the desert, then he can't come into contact with Peter, right?" Claire reasoned. "He won't absorb his power, so he can't --" she stopped herself and threw her arms up, imitating the explosion.

"Maybe," Nathan said, "but how many of us right now have abilities? Peter's already copied Isaac's, yours, Claire and mine. If you suck in anymore, then it won't matter if this guy comes near you, Peter. You'll blow up anyway."

Claire sighed, looking only at Peter. "We'll find a way," she said. "The explosion won't happen."

Peter was thankful for her faith in him, but then he thought about what Nathan had said. He'd already absorbed so many abilities, the explosion could still happen, with or without coming him into contact with Ted.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Isaac said, dragging out another portrait. It was another one of Peter, except parts of his body were missing—or invisible, rather. Claire studied the painting closely. It didn't make any sense, especially since he hadn't mentioned anyone who could make him or herself invisible. "And then there's also this one," he said, showing a smaller portrait of a bearded man, laughing. Peter recognized the scene instantly as the one from his dream.

"But I haven't met anyone who can do that," Peter protested. "I mean, I've seen this guy in my dreams, but I haven't met him." 

"Let's hope you never do," Nathan said. "You can't absorb any more abilities, Peter. It would kill you." 

Claire cringed, hearing that ugly word, especially in reference to Peter. He may have lied to her about a lot, but she still cared about him a great deal. Claire didn't want to even consider the possibility that Peter could die; it was too unbearable. Matt could understand her feelings, but didn't say anything. Besides, it wasn't the right time to talk about that...yet.

"Maybe you need something that will help focus your ability," Hiro offered, and removed a cylinder he'd been carrying. Peter watched as he pulled out an exquisite silver Samurai sword. Claire was taken back. The beauty of it was indescribable, the craftsmanship and the smoothness of the blade.

Hiro, however, wasn't quite as adapt at handling the thing and fumbled a bit, trying to grip it properly. "Mr. Isaac painted me with this, and Miss Simone helped me get it. It's supposed to help center my ability," he explained and looked at Peter. "You need something like this, Peter." 

Peter was about to protest; he knew nothing about Samurai swords. In fact, the only Samurai swords he was familiar with were the ones used on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoons. But he knew what Hiro meant. He needed to find a way to center his abilities, so they wouldn't overwhelm him. But Peter didn't think he could all that by himself. He needed someone to teach him, to guide him, like his very own Yoda.

Then Peter looked back at the painting where he was invisible and the one of the bearded man, laughing at him. Maybe this was the guy who was supposed to help him, but if he was meant to meet him, why hadn't he met him yet? He'd been in the city for three weeks, though two of them he'd spent in a coma. Maybe he hadn't had the time or wasn't really looking for the man.

Peter looked over at Claire. She was looking at the same two paintings he was, and must have realized the same thing he was thinking, because she had a mischievous smile on her face. If Isaac had only painted this recently, then that meant this invisible man was still in the city.

"We need to find him," Claire said suddenly. "There was a reason why Isaac painted this guy." She looked at Peter hopefully. "He's the one, Peter. He's the one who can help you."

"Wait just a minute," Nathan interrupted. "You can't just take off and look for a man that's invisible and insist that he teach you how to use your ability."

Peter scowled. His brother could be a real downer sometimes. "Why not?" he challenged.

"For one, you don't know where the man is. You know he's in the city, but you don't know where. You'll never be able to find him in time before the bomb goes off."

"Cynic," Claire mused, and Nathan scowled at her. "Well, you are! And your attitude really isn't helping matters, either. This guy can help Peter, and he won't be searching alone, because I'm going with him."

Nathan rolled his eyes and threw up his arms. "Of course, you are," he retorted. "The two of you are basically joined at the hip. Why wouldn't you go with him?!"

"Nathan, shut up!" Peter yelled at his brother. "If you don't want to help, you don't have to. Claire and I will go by foot."

Nathan groaned. "Fine. I'll help look for the guy," he said, "but I'm not flying the both of you together."

"We didn't ask," Peter retorted, heading for the door, Claire behind him.

The argument stopped once all three left the premises, and Hiro, Ando, Isaac, Simone, Matt and Audrey were left alone in the warehouse. Hiro was the first to speak. "I hope they can find that invisible man," he said, putting away his sword.

"Why are we here in front of Nathan's headquarters again?" Claire asked Peter as she and Peter stood across the street from the place. Claire still wasn't used to the sudden temperature change, and rubbed her hands together to keep herself warm.

Peter looked around the street for the invisible man. Ironically, Peter was standing in the same position he had been in his dream, except that the street was busy with cars and various people were walking about the sidewalk, and Claire wasn't running away from him.

"We're here because this is where I first saw the invisible man in my dream," he said.

Claire rubbed her hands together again. A lot of what was happening was new to her, but she knew that this invisible man could help Peter. But even if they found him, she wasn't entirely convinced that he would drop everything just to help Peter. Claire didn't know anything about being invisible, but she guessed that this invisible man was probably a loner, much like Peter, and didn't want to be bothered.

She looked over at Peter. His eyes were transfixed on a man across the street. Claire looked to where he was looking, but she didn't see anyone. Before she knew it, Peter bolted from her side and ran across the street. Claire sighed, chasing after him, but as she ran, she lost him; or rather, he disappeared into thin air – literally. 

Claire stopped running and went back to where Peter had left her.

Peter finally caught up with the invisible man; he didn't even notice that he had become invisible himself or that Claire wasn't beside him anymore. "Hey!" he called, but the invisible man kept on walking, not even thinking that Peter was calling to him. Why would he? He was invisible.

He rushed ahead, pushing through the crowd before tapping him on the shoulder. He turned and looked at him sourly; realization dawned on him that someone else could see him, and he furiously slammed Peter against a lamppost. "You can see me. Nobody can see me. I'm invisible. Who are you? How can you see me?!" he demanded.

"I don't know. I just do what you can do," he gasped.

The invisible man loosened his grasp on him, walking away. "Fantastic. One of those," he muttered.

Peter regained his composure and went after him. "One of those? Wait a minute, you know someone else like me? Hey, wait," he cried. "Where are you going? You need to explain this. I saw you, I saw you in my dreams. Who are you?"

"No one. I'm the invisible man. I'm Claude Rains. Now get away from me. Forget you ever saw me," he said.

Peter stopped him. "But you know what's happening to me. What is this? Listen, I found you. I need you to help me," he pleaded.

Claude studied him carefully. "Why would I want to do that?" he wondered.

"Because we're in danger. Look, this entire city is in danger. It was in my dream – people die, we die, I don't know when, but it happens," Peter explained.

Claude half-grinned at him. "Then you better leave town," he recommended, walking away again.

Peter frowned. He knew this guy could help him control his ability, and he was destined to help him, but he was such a jerk. If Claude were meant to help him, he'd seek him out, not the other way around. Now, he needed to find Claire. She wasn't too far away. As soon as she saw him over the crowd, she smiled at him hopefully, and he walked back to where she was.

"So he won't even help you?" Claire asked after Peter recounted to her his meeting with the invisible man, Claude Rains. She found it incredible that there actually was an invisible man; he sounded like some character from one of those comic books Lyle used to read when he was younger. But she never believed that he actually existed. Well, if you counted an imaginary friend as an invisible man, Claire considered.

"I wouldn't count on him, Claire," he said. "Look, we'll find a way together. We have Isaac, Hiro, and Nathan; if he'll help us…we'll find a way. I won't blow up New York."

Claire smiled at him hopefully. She knew Peter was being optimistic for her benefit, but she also knew that if the invisible man couldn't help them, then there wasn't much hope. Her hero, her Peter – if he didn't find a way to control his ability, then New York would become one giant crater because of him. No one would be left – except for maybe her, because she couldn't die, but that was an even worse fate than losing Peter.

"Where are we going now?" she wondered.

"Back to Mohinder Suresh's apartment," he said, "If Claude won't help us, then Mohinder can. We'll find a way."

Claire smiled at him briefly before looking away, tears swelling in her eyes.

Nathan barged back into Isaac's studio, startling him and the other remaining heroes. He had flown around the city for a bit, and then began asking himself why he was flying around the city, looking for a man who was invisible. Hell, Peter was probably the only one who could see him, because he could copy other people's abilities, so his efforts were pretty much useless. Matt and Audrey were still there, but they weren't paying attention to his appearance because they were studying Isaac's other paintings. Matt especially was very interested in Isaac's paintings.

"Peter and Claire haven't come back yet?" he asked Hiro.

"No, not yet," he said, "but I don't think it would be easy to find an invisible man. He could be anywhere in the city."

"Yeah, I figured that," Nathan realized. "It's late now. I'm going home. If Peter and Claire come back, call me."

Isaac waved his hand, not really paying attention to him. Sure, they'd call Nathan if Peter and Claire showed up, if they ever found the invisible man. 

Mohinder was surprised to see Peter and Claire again so quickly. His apartment was in the same condition as before, files everywhere and that map on the wall with stickies and colored pins. Peter explained to him about finding the invisible man while Claire studied the map again. Three more deceased markers had been put up since the last time she was there. The more she studied the map, she more she realized why heroes were turning up dead.

Sylar was loose.

Claire re-joined Mohinder and Peter in a frantic state. "Peter, Sylar's loose again," she whispered to him, looking at Mohinder as she told him. Mohinder reluctantly sighed and nodded that she was right. He hadn't heard anything to verify his suspicion, but it had to have been Sylar, because no one else knew about those other people with abilities.

"But first, there's something I need to show you," he said, picking up a folder with Peter's name on it. "Besides looking for people with abilities and testing what they can do, my father also worked on a vaccine to reverse abilities in case there were some that didn't want them."

Peter was taken aback. This was too much information at once. First, there was Ted, the invisible man, and Sylar loose, and now he could be cured? He felt like the Twilight Zone theme should have been playing in the background. "But I don't want it to be reversed," he said. This revelation shocked Claire. She thought if they couldn't find a way to stop him from exploding than finding, reversing his abilities would be the next step.

"But he never had the chance to test it," he said. "Even if I tested it on you, there's no guarantee that it would work."

"That's it, then? Peter is just going to explode on the New York pavement because there's nothing that can be done?!" Claire cried. Mohinder frowned and shut his mouth, feeling guilty about not being able to help Peter. Peter felt horrible too. He didn't want to explode and destroy all of New York. He didn't want to die and leave Claire. There was still much unsaid about their growing relationship.

Peter hesitantly reached out and touched Claire's shoulder, making her look at him. The sad look in her green eyes just about killed him – they just begged him to stay alive because she needed him, too. But as Peter looked into her eyes, somehow, he could feel all the things she was feeling. It was odd, but he could have sworn that he sensed a feeling from her he didn't expect her to…

Claire turned away from him suddenly. "I'm sorry," she whispered, "I just don't want you to die."

"I know how you feel," he said. "I don't want me to die, either."

"Then find Claude," she reasoned. "He may have not believed you the second time, but you need him, Peter."

"I know," he mused, "but I don't even know where to look for him."

Claire smiled suddenly. "Think about it, Peter. If you were invisible and could go anywhere you wanted, where would you hang out?" she asked.

Peter thought about what she said and then smiled, realizing he knew where Claude was. He often went there too when he wanted to be alone, and he knew Claude probably did the same.

tbc


	25. Chapter 25

Because You Found Me (Chapter 25)  
By obi's girl

Claire was right. Peter found Claude on the rooftop of the Deveaux building, feeding caged pigeons. He'd asked Claire to come with him in case Claude needed some convincing, but she opted not to because this was something he needed to do on his own. And she had said that she felt funny standing around not knowing where the invisible man was, and then there was the possibility of Peter disappearing in front of her. Claire especially didn't feel comfortable with the latter part. 

Claude spotted him as he closed the cages and marched over toward him angrily, pushing him. Peter scowled but didn't back down. "I thought I told you to leave me alone, kid," he said. "What's the matter now? You need someone to hold your hand before exploding into bits of pieces?"

"I'm only going to ask this once," Peter said. "I need you teach me to control my ability, because if you don't, you and I and those pigeons over there are going to explode into tiny particles, and New York won't be able to recover from an explosion like that for a long time."

"A bit dramatic, ey?" he mused and crossed his arms, leaning back. "What makes you think I can teach you?"

Peter shrugged. "I don't know. A friend of mine painted you, and I saw you in my dream," he said. "But I know I wouldn't have seen you in my dream and Isaac wouldn't have painted you if you weren't important to the future."

"Isaac?" Claude questioned.

"Isaac Mendez, he's an artist. He can paint the future," Peter replied. "And it'll be a grim future if New York explodes and I become dust on the pavement." 

"Again, you don't need to be so dramatic," Claude reminded him.

Peter could understand his skepticism. Claude barely knew him, and didn't know Isaac, but Peter knew that he was destined to help him. He had too. It was cheesy to say, but there were so many reasons why he didn't want to die, and a certain blond was at the top of his list. Peter really liked Claire, and he couldn't stand dying without her knowing how he felt. Even though they both had agreed that nothing could happen between them, Peter now incandescently knew the agony she must have been feeling by keeping her distance from him when she wanted so badly to be near him, and touch him without consequences.

"Look, you're my only hope…if I can't find a way..." Peter stopped himself and gulped. "You have to help me."

Claude sighed. "All right," he agreed, "but be prepared for a lot of pain, kid, because none of this is going to be easy."

Claire never liked waiting. Often, she'd have to wait for her brother Lyle to get out of the bathroom they shared so she could get ready herself. But in this case, she wasn't at home waiting on her brother. Instead, she was waiting on Peter as he tried to convince a complete stranger to teach him to control his power. Even though Isaac had painted this man, in Claire's mind, it wasn't a definite that he would help Peter. He could refuse and walk away. Of course, if he did that, then Claire would have probably jump in and threaten him to help Peter because she didn't want Peter to explode, and couldn't imagine parts of him scattered all over New York.

To Claire, Peter was special; he was caring, understanding…and cute. Of all his wonderful characteristics, his looks were a definite plus, but she knew there was more to him than that. He understood her better than anyone, and had let her to stay with him when she didn't have anyone else to turn to. And when Claire was with him, she felt alive and at peace.

Claire realized that her father could still show up at any minute and take her back to Odessa, but right now, she was happy to be with Peter and she was sure that her presence comforted him as well.

_Maybe he needs me,_ she thought to herself and stood up, quietly leaving the studio.

Only Matt noticed her leave, and couldn't help but smile, knowing that she was going to be with Peter, because he was her hero.

Peter was explaining to Claude his visions and his friends when Claire found them on the rooftop. She didn't see them, of course, but she knew Peter was there. It was funny how Claire was able to sense Peter...maybe it was because she had become attached to him to the point that she could feel him without seeing him. It was odd, but comforting at the same time.

"Peter, are you here?" she called.

Peter smiled when he saw Claire. She moved forward hesitantly, and then went to the caged pigeons, looking fondly at them. "I just came up here to check up on you," she said.

Claude looked curiously at the petite blond; she couldn't have been more than sixteen years old, but judging from the way Peter was looking at her, clearly, she was special to him. And Claude deduced that she was probably the reason he didn't want to blow up. At least now he knew the man's motivation. She was a pretty little thing. "Your sweetheart, mate?" he asked him. 

Claire turned toward the voice. Again, she didn't see anyone, but knew she heard a voice coming from the ledge. She walked closer to it. Peter ignored Claude's comment and walked toward Claire. The closer he got to her, the more his body materialized into solid form. Claire gasped at the sight in front of her. He really could copy other people's abilities.

"Hi."

"Hey," she said casually. "The invisible man's here, I take it?" 

"Yes," a voice said. "And you are?" 

Claire didn't know where to look, but since she could see Peter fine, he had to be over by the ledge. "Claire," she said. "I'm a friend of Peter's."

Claude studied the girl. Peter didn't appreciate the way Claude was looking at Claire, but he knew it was only because he was curious about her. She was young, after all, and if she was a friend of Peter's, then that meant she also possessed an ability. "So, what can you do, Claire?" he asked.

"Um," she said, "I can heal. I healed Peter when he died after fell off the amphitheater at my school."

"You've healed just Peter? No one else?" 

"Um, myself," she clarified. "It's not a very active power. Why? Is that important or something?"

Peter rolled his eyes. He didn't approve of Claude's interest in Claire. Claire was only seventeen years old, after all, and Claude was…he didn't know Claude's exact age, but he had to be older than Claire and himself, which made the idea of the two of them even more disgusting.

"I was just curious is all," he said. "I've met several people with abilities. I think my favorite has to be astral projection – now, there was a power that could come in handy if you needed to get out of a tight situation."

For a minute, Claire wondered what he meant by 'tight situations,' but let it go. It was then that she realized that she detected a slight British accent, so she knew he was from England. 

"How old are you, Claire?" he said, studying Claire again.

Claire looked at Peter and blushed. She didn't think she looked older than seventeen, but apparently, she was wrong. "Um, seventeen," she giggled and smiled. "Why? Do I look older?" 

Claude shrugged. "All I know is that you're a beautiful angel, Claire," he said. "Did you know that the name 'Claire' means 'illustrious?'"

She smiled thoughtfully at him, impressed. "No, I didn't know that," she mused.

"All right, that's enough!" Peter cried, unable to take the exchange anymore, and steered her away from his new mentor.

Claire frowned, surprised by Peter's behavior. She knew that Claude was only being friendly. After all, it probably had been a very long time since he'd talked to a woman who actually knew he existed. "Peter…I," Claire started. "What is the matter with you? Claude was just being friendly."

Peter ignored her comments. "Claire, isn't he a bit old for you?" he whispered. "I mean he has to be older than you and me."

Even though he was slightly offended by that comment, Claude didn't say anything about it, and curiously watched the exchange between them. Clearly, there was something going on between them, but until this point, they hadn't really considered each other's feelings as something more. That much he could tell.

"Aren't you _too_ old for me?" she shot back.

Peter scowled. "That's not the point, Claire," he said, sighing. "He's just _not_ for you."

"And _you_ are?" Claire challenged.

Peter wanted to say something, but didn't know what. He really had no right to tell Claire whom she could or could not like. He wasn't her boyfriend or lover. It shouldn't have even bothered him, but it did, more so than Peter wanted to admit.

Claire, of course, didn't have a romantic interest in Claude, but she was flattered that Peter thought she did. It really touched her that he felt something for her, even if it was jealousy. It was something, and that was all that mattered. But it still peeved her the way he was acting. "I never said that I was romantically interested in Claude, Peter," she pointed out, "but if you're not careful, maybe one day I will end up with someone you won't like."

Claire looked to the ledge, where she assumed Claude was still. "Claude, it was a pleasure meeting, you and I hope you can help Peter. Maybe you can even tune down his ego a bit," she said.

Claude smiled, watching Claire leave. He'd only just met her, but already he liked her. She knew how to put Peter in his place, and that was a big achievement for a girl like her. Peter scolded himself for acting that way in front of Claire and looked back at his mentor.

"I like her," Claude said.

Peter glared back at him. "Oh yeah?" he questioned.

"Relax Peter," Claude eased. "I'm not a pedophile or anything. You, on the other hand, I don't know about," Peter glared at him again and he raised his hands. "I was kidding."

Peter shook his head, went to the door and looked back at him. "Are you coming?" he asked.

"Why?" 

"Because my other friends are going to want to meet you," Peter explained, "but don't worry, Claire's the only seventeen-year-old in the mix."

Claude walked towards to him, smiling. "Oh good! I just can't wait to meet the others. Are we going to sing Kumbaya and exchange stories about our special abilities while roasting marshmallows?" he asked sarcastically. 

Peter restrained himself as he followed Claude.

No one, except for Claire, noticed Peter and Claude come into the studio. She was still angry with him for acting like a jealous boyfriend when he wasn't even her boyfriend. Claude noted how angry she still was, but he couldn't blame her. Obviously, there were strong feelings between her and Peter, and issues that clearly had yet to be resolved, but whatever was going on between them had to wait until later. And neither of them liked that all.

Peter stepped away from Claude, and materialized in the middle of the room, shocking the current inhabitants, except for Claire. "Um hey, I'm back," he said, "and I brought Claude."

They all stared at him, not really knowing whom he was referring to, so Claire stepped in. "He means the invisible man from Isaac's painting," she said. "His name is Claude Rains." 

Peter smiled over at her, thankful that she was helping him with this, despite what happened on the roof earlier.

"So, where is he?" Matt asked.

Claire looked at Peter and then he turned back to the door. Claude sighed, grabbing a dirty towel on a table and whipped it about, encouraging "ooo's" and "ah's" from everyone else. "Like Peter said, I'm Claude Rain," he said. "I've already met Claire…you all must be the others Peter was talking about. Let's see if I can guess right who's who, shall we?"

Peter gestured, all right. Claude walked around the studio, first stopping in front of Isaac. He had some splashes of red and blue paint on his face. "The one who can paint the future, Isaac Mendez," he said. Isaac indicated that he was right, realizing that he had some paint on him. Claude handed him the cloth he picked up before and used it to clean himself. Next, he came to Hiro and Ando. "The clock stopper, Hiro Nakamura and Ando – sorry, Peter didn't tell me your last name."

Ando blushed and looked at his friend. Next up were Matt and Audrey. "The confused mind reader Matt Parkman, and his partner, Audrey Hanson," he said, turning to look at Claire. "And of course, Claire, the invincible cheer–" 

"Hmm, former cheerleader," she corrected him. 

"Sorry, former cheerleader, Miss Claire," he said. "Is there anyone I missed?"

"Well, my brother Nathan and Simone aren't here," Peter added, "but you can meet them later."

Claude looked back at him curiously. "That's all right," he said. "Peter told me about his exploding and destroying all of New York. He said if he wasn't able to control his ability then his dream might come true…" 

Claire stepped forward, crossing her arms. "…Which can't happen. Is there anything you can to help him?" she asked. 

"My first suggestion would be to get away from all of you, including you, Claire, and figure out how to draw out his abilities one at a time," he said. "Sorry, but I'm afraid, Peter, that you will have to leave New York after all." 

"What?" Claire cried, "No!!! You mean even after Peter's convinced you that he needs your help, he still HAS to leave New York?! That's not fair."

Claude wanted to say something to comfort her, but he didn't know what, so Peter stepped in. He didn't want to leave New York and Claire either, but if that's what he had to do to protect his friends and Claire, then he had to do it. "Claire, listen to me. I know you don't like this, but I have to do this. I need to get away and focus how to draw my abilities one by one, and I can't do that here. Believe me, Claire, I don't want to go away from New York – and you – but I have to do this," he said.

Claire couldn't believe what she was hearing; Peter leaving New York and her…it was like a bad dream. She loved Peter so much, but now he was leaving and he'd never know how she felt about him. They'd never get to resolve anything, say what they wanted to say to each other because of this. "There's no other way?" she pleaded.

"Sorry Claire," Claude added, "but Peter needs to leave New York."

Peter braced his hands on her shoulders, turning her away from Claude and the others. "Look, you know, Claire, as long as I'm here with you and the others, I'm absorbing more abilities, and eventually my body won't be able to handle all those abilities anymore." 

"Yeah, I remember," she said. "I just don't want you to leave because of this."

Peter smiled and lightly brushed her cheek with his hand. "I'll be back when I can control this," he whispered. "I promise, Claire, I'll be back."

Claire smiled at him hopefully. She wanted to tell him 'I love you,' but she felt awkward saying it in front of their friends. For the moment, Claire settled for a tender hug from the man she loved so dearly. Peter held onto Claire as long as he could, trying to remember everything about that moment and about her. He couldn't erase the tears from her eyes, tears she didn't want anyone else to see but even so, Claire never had looked so beautiful and so fragile. Secretly, Peter wished that he could stay with her forever.

"Peter," Claude interrupted, "we have to get going,"

Peter didn't leave where he was, standing there with Claire in his arms, but he knew he had to let go. Claire was surprised when he leaned down suddenly, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I promise I'll come back," he whispered. 

Claire cringed as let go of her and left with Claude. She wanted to scream and cry but she couldn't – she felt so numb if someone had pinched her, she wouldn't have felt it.

Peter hated leaving Claire; he didn't even have the chance to call Nathan and ask his brother to look after her. At least if Nathan and Heidi were looking after her, then he knew that she would be safe and with someone who could comfort her when he couldn't. Nathan could be a pain in the ass sometimes, but he was sure, if given time, he and Claire could become close friends. He was sure that she and Heidi would get along fine. But most of all, Peter hated that he wasn't able to tell Claire how he really felt about her.

They'd put off talking about their true feelings for each other, and now they were forced to wait even longer. But Peter vowed once he did have control over his ability, that he would come back and be with Claire. 

After all, he was her hero, and Peter refused to let her down.

The End


End file.
